A promise you can't keep is a devil lie
by Lkea
Summary: School Fic. Tidus has his eyes set on Yuna for quite some time except she's out of his league, completely. Why? Because it's forbidden. Perhaps forbidden fruit tastes sweetest. A relationship unbeknownst to most...'Rated M just in case' A School
1. My horrible life

**Hi all. I'm very stuck in my main story, which is Four Winds as it does contain some ancient ideas but it's hard to express. I decided to start from a brand new point, like writing a Fan Fic for FFX:) **

**Perhaps it's because I'm having a chapter writers block on the other story, dont worry, I know exactly what happens in the main story plot :P**

**I've decided to start a new story to keep my mind off my main story for a while. So I might start writing this...**

**Disclaimer: I dont own any Final Fantasy Character Names ... etc. But however I do own the idea of my own understanding of the characters :P hehe...**

**Ok ok. I currently have no idea where this story is going to go, except for a few elements and complications here and there, but on the whole I have no clue. So I might be blurbing about the character developement for a while :( **

**okok Enjoy reading **

**(Edited 26th December 2008) - Re Reading what I've written, small changes applied. Added bits and things, colouring the picture more **

**(Edited 25th July 2007) - Major Problems with some sentences, I hope I didn't miss any. **

**(Edited 27th August 2007) Small problems here and there. And yes I did miss some. Also I just put the sentence in a better way, it sounded...awkard.**

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**Chapter 1- Reason**

I hurried downstairs from my two story apartment, grabbing my breakfast : a crumpet, and dashing through the half fallen apart front gate. Oh Yevon, I'm running late. Again. I am so going to get whipped by theteacher for being late again… darn it, why couldn't I wake up earlier. Ok, maybe those were stupid questions to ask myself. I didn't think I was the type of person to be late though, however I _was _late quite a few times this week already, and today was another one to add to my record. Last night I was up really late, occupied on trying to complete an art project due at the beginning of next week. I initially had wanted to start the project early, to give myself extra time to do research, and all that but instead I was all messed up with all my other subjects, so now lets say...totally bummed out. These thoughts popped in and out of my head as i bolted along the corner, and dashing through the school gates.

Running at top speed ( or so I thought), I dashed to my locker and punched in the password code, clawed all my books out and pounded around the school corridors. Wait a minute, what was my first period? Damn it. Hmm, should have checked what I had on. Stupid Tidus. Clusmy and idiotic. Cursing at myself for not checking what I had on at first period, where my timetable was stuck very obviously at the back of my locker door, I ran back tracing my steps back to my locker. Cursing again, I found that my first period was in fact history. Why on earth was it compulsory to study history anyways, I mean, out of all the subjects in the world it had to be history. Yup, I hate history. No, I despise history. I know what they say. They say that history makes us learn about the past so we can prevent things in the future bla bla bla, whatever. I dont give. History sucks.

"You're late Tidus" the moment I poked my head into the door.

"Sorry Sir, I have problems with my biological clock", I joked ignoring him and walking towards my seat.

"Well, take it to a clockmaker and fix it"

"Hmm….does a clockmaker fix bodily organs?"

"Just shut up and sit down" said in an annoying tone, clearly he was sick of me. I thumped down on my seat, letting all my weight fall upon it.

For the rest of the lesson, I hung my head on my shoulders pondering about absolutely nothing, then finally leaned forward to sleep. I clearly did not care at all if I failed history or not. It was one of those minor subjects which no one cares about. ( How wrong was I, when I had to learn it the hard way later on) Luckily I managed to acquire some of my lost sleep from last night during history class. I awoke realising that the bell for end of period had already rung. Wow, that was unexpected, period went so fast.

"Tidus, come here" a voice echoed to me from the front of the empty classroom.

"Yes, Mr Maechen" I said sleepishly, it seems I still haven't recovered from my temporary dose of sleep.

"Your attitude towards work is something that concerns me greatly. In fact not only me, but more importantly you. Don't you think that arriving thirty mins after the beginning of school for three days straight is a little overboard?"

_Not at all, considering what I was up to last night…_

"Yes sir, I'm sorry." Perhaps too fast, it sounded I wasn't sincere enough.

"Well, this isn't good enough. If this continues I'm afraid I will have to have a little talk with your parents" he said grimly, knowingly clearly I wont oblige.

"Yes sir" was I all manage to conjure up as a response.

_My parents… means my old man… which also means a drunken man who never actually appears when you need him but always there when you don't intend to see him, if that makes any sense._

"You may leave, but remember what I said" he warned me sharply, knowing very well why I had opened my mouth to say something but decided against it.

I left, without looking back, I briskly walked to my locker again until I bumped hard into someone.

"Hey how's it going Tidus? Late again?"

"Shut up Gippal, you know me; I wouldn't be late…if it wasn't something very important." I replied, punching him softly in the arm and smiling back.

"Oh, something important…eh? That makes me wonder, what _WERE_ you doing last night, up so late?" he grin back, and giving me one of his flashy 'you know what I'm talking about' looks.

"Gippal, it's not what you think. I had an art project…and plus I haven't had one of _those_ in a while now." I replied back, trying to explain myself to him, as he clearly misunderstood me.

"Sure sure, whatever." He whipped his head around and grabbed a girl who somehow popped up behind him at that particular instant and kissed her right there, in front of me. Yup, tongue and all.

"Err.. Gippal, are you sure... Umm you would be doing that in front of me… and the whole school? Where's your 'ladies man' reputation gone? And, hey Rikku" I stammered as I scratched my blond streaks, staring at the two who were oblivious to the other people in the hall turning to look at them. It felt somewhat uncomfortable being there.

After a whole minute of seeing their tongues in each other and their hands all over the other's body, they released each other's grip and turned to me.

"Hey Tidus, nice to see you" as Rikku spluttered out. I could see that her face was really red and hot though I decided not to further comment or even mention of the topic.

"Ti, haven't you been doing this all of last night?" he gave me a kinky look, with a notion that was very suggestive.

I stared blankly at him. Obviously he did not believe a word I said to him for the past few minutes, let alone listen to me.

"Gip, leave him along, if he wants to concentrate on art and Blitzball, and that's all he wants to do, then let him." Good old Rikku, always knowing exactly what I thought.

She squeaked loudly as I scuffled her hair in acknowledgement for her comment, then she stomped on my foot and ran to her next class.

"Ti, I gotta go too. See you later okay?" he shouted as he sprinted after Rikku.

"Okay…" I responded too softly for him to be heard, as I myself started to my next class. Magic class. Oh great, another one of _those_ subjects. Except perhaps, and I really mean PERHAPS a little tiny bit more useful than history.

Despite what everyone might think of me, I wasn't the type of person who is on the extremities of being a player nor was I a nerd. Clearly, people think I'm a player, perhaps because I supposedly 'make out' with a lot of girls after every Blitzball game, as a kind of inheritance from old man. Well… perhaps a few times I did… but that wasn't the point. I wasn't a player. Now to the nerd part. Yes, I do have my interests in two subjects, Blitzball and Visual Arts. Why? Because I enjoy Blitzball _A Lot_. I love to score goals and feel the exilaration of success run through my veins as it pumped me with excitement. Visual Arts… well let's say I have an interest in the subject too. Thinking of Blitzball, and all its strategies kind of made my mind have a creative side to it perhaps...so definintely not a nerd. My status at school is rather weird actually, I'm quite loved and I'm quite hated by a lot of people too.

A giggle from a few girls as they walked passed me, darn; did I wonder too much and stand there blankly? Wait... there was _her_. Why was she laughing at me? Did I look so idiotic?

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**So how was that:P I''ve got a vague idea on how the story will go, though there's not much substances just yet. I'm sure I'll conjure up something ) So long ppl **


	2. A new friend

**Ok guys, I've decided to quickly update the next chapter to my story. It's a bit longer than my usual chapter length but not too long I guess. :P I might consider writing longer chapters in the future, but that might mean longer time for updates :(**

**Anyways enjoy :D**

**(Edited 26th December 2008)**

**(Edited 26th July 2007)**

**(Edited 27th August 2007) - I can't believe I missed a whole sentence when I typed this up. It was the fact that Paine was in the mall with her friends.. Not important, but just there..**

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**Chapter 2 – A new friend**

The rest of the day went by very slowly indeed, but eventually it did come to the last period of the day which was Visual Arts. The teacher of that class was a young female teacher, and well, young female teachers are quite attractive to a 17 yr old boy don't you think? Not really actually, when it comes to this one. Ms Belgemine was not as attractive as you might have hoped, though however I do admire her artistic skills. And she's quite nice, every one of her students love her. Back when we were all in junior high, she taught us how to draw the Blitzball. It's blue and white colours mixed with the oddly shaped bumps on it was quite a challenge, and was a surprised to even me even though I basically grew up with it. That left a good impression of her inside my mind.

I hopped into the front door of the classroom, glancing around for a spare seat. With a smile, I found a spare seat next to Rikku and jumped into the chair. It was the last lesson of the day, and I was extremely happy the day is almost over.

"Hey Ti, how's your day? Haven't seen you around all day, except…" Rikku said, whilst she was flicking around with her pencil.

"I dunno. I've been pretty out of it lately, perhaps it's because the Blitzball competition is soon and I'm so excited that I can't wait." I announced as cheerfully as I could, peering around wondering where Ms Belgemine was. She never was the type of person to be late to class.

"I see…glancing around to find you know who…Isn't it easy to tell which is more important to you. Blitzball or her" she commented, glaring me straight in the eye.

"Wah? I think you miss understood me Rikku…" I began to explain myself, knowing exactly whom she had in mind.

"You know who" she pointed with her small pointy finger towards the classroom door.

A girl wearing a pair of tight jeans and a pink top with a hood walked in. Her figure, I noted was anorexic if you ask me though she does have her kind of style.

"Shhh Rikku, keep it down will you?" I hushed her as I stopped staring at _her_ and reached for my backpack for all my art utensils.

"Ti, you don't have to be shy you know, she's just a good looking girl" she giggled. The good old classic Rikku giggle.

"So, Rikku what are you up to recently apart from school?" I started, trying to diverge her thoughts from _her._ Although I was chatting with Rikku, my eyes seemed to continue following that girl who just walked in. Normally when I met a girl, I would casually walk up to her and start using all the tricks in the book, but this time I didn't want to do that. Something told me that I should let time take its toll.

"Nothing much, Gip and I decided to go to the mall today after school. We wanted to find something that we would wear. You know those couple clothes."

"What do you mean?" I said, very confused with her use to language.

"Matching set of clothes, I was thinking purple top and purple trousers. Do you wanna tag along?" she stated, as I tried to imagine Gippal having to wearing the same type of clothes as Rikku. Without knowing, I blurted out laughing. The idea of such a crazy idea was so funny.

"Fine, if you don't want to, you don't have to laugh" she slapped me on the leg quite hardly, as I heard a loud _SLAP_ on my thigh.

"Ouch! Ok ok, I'll prove I won't never laugh by coming along." I said with a degree of seriousness this time. Still glancing from time to time at the girl who keeps catching my attention.

"You know where to meet. Old place" she whispered as we all noticed that the class has started already.

Art class was normally quite fun, as the class was not limited to pen and paper. In fact, this time Visual Arts consisted of everyone drawing their favourite animal on paper and imprinting it on a clay mat. Of course I wasn't into animals very much, so I settled in for a shoopuf. I found the lesson quite interesting, especially after the lesson with Maechen and some other geography teacher to whom I don't know the name of. It was a nice contrast to the dodgey boring old lectures held by some professor from somewhere talking about something totally useless.

All good times come to an end, and the bell for end of school rang.

"Hey Ti, I'm gonna see Gip, I'll see you in 2mins" Rikku shouted after grabbing her tiny black backpack and dashing out of the classroom. Rikku was always a good friend of mine, ever since Gippal, my best friend got together with her. I don't even recall when Gippal had got together with her; their relationship is extremely healthy and long termed. Perhaps I could maintain a strong and long relationship instead of quick romances.

Without thinking, I seized the paint brush that I was using and dipped it in the sink where everyone was washing. In doing so, the sudden outward motion caused a paint bucket to fall down from where it was placed and spill paint all over me and a few students who were around me.

"Tidus! You bastard!" they shrieked loudly at me.

"Oh-oh, I'm sorry. I guess I wasn't paying attention. Sorry" I apologised. I hadn't meant for that to happen. I began to wash the paint on their aprons (luckily that was the rule for painting; we all had to wear aprons. Good news is, I wouldn't get bashed that day. Bad news, it made us all look like housewives.) and thus one by one they ran away. It was evident that they didn't appreciate what I did. I felt like a dweeb. Not cool Tidus, not cool at all.

"Tidus…you have paint all over your pants" _she _said to me. Wow, that was something I hadn't really expected. Out of all the people only one person forgave me.

"Oh, thanks" I replied and quickly used a cloth to wipe the spill, though clearly it wasn't very effective.

_She _laughed at my incompetence and picked up a wet cloth and began to spray something on it, then handing it to me.

"This should help".

"Thank you"

Moments after that encounter, I walked up the rock hard pavement of the parking lot and glanced around for Gippal's car. Smiling to myself a bit when I saw Rikku wave at the corner of my eye, I rushed to them and gave her a hug, oddly enough that I've only seen her not ten minutes prior. Then punched Gippal on the arm lightly and grinned at him. It was my way of greeting him perhaps.

Gippal was a ladies man; he seemed like the kind of person who is trying to impress every girl in sight. Although Rikku wasn't very fond of that aspect of him, I'm sure they are still in love with each other, considering that they were childhood friends from a very young age. Perhaps his height impressed the girls, or was it his nice attitude. Maybe the jokes he played helped. Whichever it is, he was less hated by others. Unlike me.

"Thanks" Rikku said, as Gippal opened the door of the car on her side and Gippal hopped around into the driver's seat.

"Hey Gip, mind dropping me back here after we're finished? My car is still parked here." I stated as I climbed into the car too.

"Sure, no probs man." And the car's engine ignited.

Not long after that, we were at the mall shopping around. Rikku was literally on her toes, bouncing up and down like a bunny. All I could see was that she was zipping around left right left at such amazing speed. Probably on hyper, I commented to myself as I smiled to Gippal.

"Gip, you've got quite a girlfriend"

"Yeah…I guess. I thought you've gotten used to her by now"

"Nope" I said simply.

Well, I bet out of all the years that I've been with him, he hasn't went shopping with Rikku. Shopping was one thing, seeing Rikku hop around was another.

"Hey, I'm gonna grab an Icy drink from the bar over at Shiva's tavern. I'll see you in a bit." I announced, because I felt that I was intervening with their private time. Gippal was my friend since primary school; Rikku had been with him since sometime beyond my memory can remember, which implies I knew them profoundly. This was their time, I should leave them alone.

I sat down draining the icy cold liquid when I spotted Paine sitting at a close by table. I waved to her, and got up to talk to her. ( She would never get up to walk to you)

"Hey Paine, how's everything?"

"Hi, and everything is nice" she said in a sarcastic manner.

Paine was also another member of our squad, if other people want to perceive it that way. Initially she was Gippal's friend, and she kept by herself so not many of us know her. Recently, Paine had come to join our group chats during lunchtimes and we've come to know a little about her. Just a little. I've noticed that she doesn't talk much, and it's hard to pry open her history so I guess it'll be a mystery.

"So, what brings you here? I mean I haven't see you around" I stated, trying to make conversation with her. You see with her, you have to be the one asking the questions, or at the very least lead the conversation or otherwise there is no conversation.

"I'm out here with my friends. What I should be asking you is what were _you_ doing all of today. I haven't seen you all day." Returning my answer with a grim remark.

"I was talking to Wakka about the Blitz championships which is coming up you see. And I needed some time to calm down and sleep after working so hard on my art project."

"Ok, so trying to impress someone" she muttered and sipped her drink.

I decided to remain quiet, her red eyes seem penetrating. I don't know why I felt so clear and see through when I am with her. She knows all. Or perhaps rumours spread fast. Well not really fast, because it has been quite some time...

Then my phone rang.

"Excuse me" I pushed the chair back and walk away to talk on the phone.

"Hello?"

"_Hey Tidus, It's me Shuyin, where are you now?"_

"I'm at the mall with some friends, why? What's going on Shu?"

"_It's the old man. He's drunk and all furious. Could you come home? I don't think I can handle him all crazy like this"_

"I'll be there" I hung up the phone.

Jecht, after loosing our mother, was always out to drink. I know that Shuyin wouldn't be able to handle him if he was on max _limit break_. It's how I call his madness. Just too crazy to bare.

"Hey Paine, I gotta go. Catch ya later" I said, finishing my frozen drink and dashed back to search for Gippal.

"Bye" was the response that came.

After explaining to Rikku about my sudden intention to leave, we left her alone shopping whilst Gippal drove me back to school.

"Listen Gip, sorry for interrupting your date with Rikku. I shouldn't have bothered you guys"

"Don't worry about it, we're best buds anyway." I remained silence, because my mind started wondering about my old man, and how Shuyin was doing.

Watching Gippal drive back towards the mall, I turned around to see Lenne's car pull over and drop someone off. Shuyin had a crush on Lenne recently, though they haven't got together yet, their friendship is quite good. I waved to Lenne as she drove off too, and in response she gave a beep of her car. Then I noticed who she dropped off, as I also realised I was walking towards that person.

"Hey, I heard you were hanging out with Paine, how come your back here?" I asked, trying not to be too nosy about the business. ( She was friends with Paine, so it was obvious when Paine said "out with friends" )

"I forgot some books for tomorrow so I've come back"

"Yuna…I would like to thank you for your support during art class."

"Thank me? Why?"

"Because you're the only one who stood up for me. Not that I give what they think, but you stood up for me anyhow." Did that sound too clumsy?

"No problem, I guess anyone would have stood up for you if they had to chance to…"

"So, how do you plan on getting home? Do you need a lift? It's the least I could do for friend who stood up for me." Damn you Tidus, did you have to be so obvious. I looked around, avoiding her eyes. What about Shuyin! Tidus you bastard, forgot about girls and do something more proper!

"Cool, if that's ok with you, just wait. I'll get my books" Yuna replied sweetly as she ran inside the school building.

For some strange reason, my heart was pounding fast. Excited perhaps that I made a friend, not that I am in a lack for friends, but a quality friend, who stands up for me when I'm in need. Or is it...?

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**So hows that, I'll start on my next chapter. I know exactly what will happen in the next chapter so it's just ideas to paper now :P So long! Read and review :)**


	3. Fire and Water

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Ok, here's the next installment :P It seems that things have started to turn interesting, I tried to describe a little about a few of the characters ) This chapter is also a bit long ( in my scale) but I've decided that this is the approximate length I will be writing for each of my chapters. I had a bit of trouble writing this chapter up, I could picture the ending of this chapter but I needed to fill in the bits in the middle. I like the how it turned out though.

(Edited 26th December 2008)

(Edited 27th August 2007) - A few things here and there. Nothing major.

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**Chapter 3: Fire and Water**

My mind started to wonder, why did Shuyin want me home so badly? It was very likely that my old man started to go berserk because of his binge drinking spree. Would Shuyin be able to handle it? If not, what will happen to the apartment? Burnt? Tidus! Don't hope for such things to happen to your home. But thinking of my old man always made me mad, because it was always Shuyin and me taking care of ourselves as opposed to our parents caring for us. As if you think that is bad, but we had to 'baby sit' our own father because he wouldn't act responsibly. We both kind of had a deprived childhood, give or take.

As I started to wonder back into reality, I had totally forgotten where I had parked my car. Stupid me, how could you forget. Out of the dozen cars in the parking lot, the majority were old fashioned cars obviously owned by the teachers still remaining at school. (Marking exams or papers, or setting intense homework which only professors can do) There were a few students about, possibly after school activities, so it was rather quiet here. A couple of minutes had passed, which caused me to suspect the reason why Yuna was taking so long to find her books. A light tap on my shoulders from behind revealed a very elegant face, one eye sky blue and the other emerald green. Those were the most beautiful set of eyes I've seen in my life.

"Tidus? Here I am." she spoke in a humoured manner.

I was lost for words for a few seconds. Tidus, get a hold of yourself darn it!

"Oh, hey I was just wondering where you were" stating the obvious, sounding very dumb indeed.

"Yeah…I could see that…" she smiled slightly, and giggled to herself at my stupidity. She stood in the afternoon sunlight, the orange glow reflecting brilliantly off her forehead, that smile I couldn't possibly forget even after a thousand years. The wind blew tendrils of her hair across her blushed cheeks and she lifted a thin hand to brush them away.

"So…" as I was coming back to reality once again.

"Where are we headed?" I spoke, obviously awaking from my dream state.

"Oh, here I'll draw you a map." She carefully took out a piece of paper from her handbag and started to draw a very rough sketch of the roads.

"Looks like a skeleton to me." I joked, as the picture to me looked like a series of lines and dots with a flag representing the school at one end of it, and her name written at the other. I scrunched my eyes to see the road names that she written down when I spotted the road I lived on scratched on the paper.

"It's the best I could do" she stated honestly.

"I wonder how you top Visual Arts… comes to question your creative juices" I laughed, knowing all well and clear that when it came to drawing, I was far outmatched by her.

"Cool, I live a couple of blocks away from you, so it's not too much trouble" I remarked.

Yuna had been in Zanarkand high for a few years now but we've never talked for more than a few sentences but at the very least she did trust me otherwise she wouldn't have accepted my offer of driving her home. I appreciated it greatly; it just means that my reputation at school wasn't too bad that it couldn't be saved.

The trip was quiet for the most part, so I decided to break the silence but she stole my idea.

"Tidus, you know Blitzball competition is about to start? When are you going to start training?" she questioned me. Well, it was a genuine question and it shows that she knew that I was very into Blitzball.

"It starts right after the weekend, so on Monday we will have our teams selected and starting to train. Wakka says that we should get to intensive training as soon as possible seeing that we've slacked off quite a bit after the half semester holidays. You see, Wakka is keen on winning the championships as our greatest rival C-Duggles were annoying him with threats and stuff."

"That's horrible, I kind of feel sorry for Wakka. He has a great burden"

"Do you know that they might start a team for both guys and girls for Blitzball? Are you planning to join?" Tidus, you're starting to act stupid in front of Yuna again. Did you really have to ask so straightforward? Watch the road!

"I don't know about that, I mean I've only watched a few Blitzball matches. I know the basics and the rules but that's about all" she replied, seemingly to be indecisive but that still means there hope for her to join right?

"If you need my help in terms of Blitzball, I'll be glad to help. Anyways if you decide to join, I'll give Lulu a call. Bet she will be willing to help too."

"Bet she will" she smiled, as she stared at the window. Maybe she was considering joining.

A few minutes later I parked my car on the curb side of her house and got out of the car to walk her up her front garden. It was an incredible piece of artwork; the house was purely magnificent and also grand. Her family must have been extremely rich. Normally, good children don't originate from rich families but Yuna on the contrary was behaved, and a very mature and independent.

"Who, nice house" I commented, as I continued to admire the grandeur of the structure, and the shear magnitude.

"Thanks, want to come inside to have a drink?" she offered nicely.

"I'd love to but I have some errands to run at home, maybe some other time." I kindly rejected the offer and waved to her whilst she said goodbye and I turned back on the pavement. Well, at least that was the beginning.

Oh god forgot my old man! He's sooo going to burn the house now.

A few minutes later, after driving a few kilometres over the speed limit which is sixty on these streets, I arrived anxiously at the apartment. I didn't even approach the door as I heard screaming and shouting. Getting more worried that Shuyin wasn't able to handle the old man, I rapidly opened the door. A blur. A loud shout. Before I knew what hit me, a vase flew my way and shattered on the wall centimetres from my head. Phew, almost died. Pushing the thought aside for now, I peered into the room and stared face to face with Jecht. As like it was ordinary routine, Shuyin reached for Jecht's destructive arms and locked them tight with all his might. During this time, I dived forward and clamped down both his legs. Jecht struggled and twisted, like a wild beast, but finally his efforts were futile and he stopped.

"Old man, calm down. Stay cool" I found my mouth scream those words over his grunts. Somehow he managed to take a chill for now, but who knows when he might erupt again. His fiery rage was unstoppable if only one of us were here. I had no idea how Shuyin managed to cope with him for so long before I arrived. Shuyin grabbed some pills from the desk just a few steps away and made him swallow it. We both carried the now sleeping Jecht onto the cough where he will be sleeping for the next twenty four hours. Sometimes I wonder how Jecht resembled a crocodile, the menace in his eyes and the sheer power of his muscles. Lets not get into that... After a few minutes of panting to catch each other's breaths, Shuyin got up from the carpet floor and spoke to me.

"What took you so long?"

"I was at the mall with some friends and got side tracked for a bit afterwards" My excuse wasn't very excusable, if you get the gist of it.

"I don't know how long I can cope with this every week." Shuyin started to blink his eyes a bit, look away.

"Bro, we shouldn't cry because of this old man should we? We should stand up by ourselves and show that we don't need him"

"You're right. I'm gonna show this guy 'who's ya daddy'" he joked and gave me a huge grin.

Well, that episode went smoother than I expected. Usually Jecht would fuss and brag afterwards on how he's only had one hundred bottles and how others have more, then it would cycle between Shuyin and me holding him down and him breaking free and throwing objects around.

"Shu, I think I'm going to take a brisk walk. I need some time to think. You think you will be fine?"

He only nodded and shut the door of his bedroom, locking himself inside.

The afternoon sun was setting, casting elongated shadows upon everything in sight. The footpath was rock hard and cold, with my 5 metre shadow stretching along the length of it. Winter was about to come, summer on the brink of disappearance. I watched a couple of kids kick Blitzballs around their yard, laughing and running. So carefree and so happy.

"Sonny, kick it here!" shouted a man standing on the veranda.

I sighed. The city of Zanarkand was after all a city, though we lived in the suburban areas. Zanarkand was separated into four different sections, and this was one of them. Zanarkand A East. A long time ago, Jecht was a member of Zanarkand Blitzball team, back when my mother was still alive. Since her departure everything has changed. The family has deteriorated to shreds, with only me and Shuyin holding it up. Since primary school, Shuyin and I were the best of buds, always wanting to walk in the footsteps of our old man. We can see how that turned out… I love Blitzball, it's my passion. In my early years of high school, all I acknowledged was Blitzball and …well, girls maybe. Blitzball because I was the star player of the school team though only in the junior division. Those bastards didn't make me senior captain even though I was clearly many times better than them. I sought out a good reputation in year seven. Popularity mattered a lot for me back then. Perhaps a few years ago, I started to reconsolidate about my prospects. Jecht had a good reputation, so what? Nothing. Exactly. I didn't want to become a materialistic hobo like my old man, I wanted something of greater value. Understanding.

Without knowing where I was walking, I found myself a few blocks away from Wakka's house so I decided to pay him a visit. Wakka was more than just a coach of the school team, he was a great buddy. Instead of treating players like machines, he treated us like equals. I needed to ask a few questions. Turning a left on the next block, I walked up the street to where Wakka and Lulu lived. Their house wasn't a very large house, but at the very least it did seem like a home.

"Woh, Tidus, didn't expect you to come. How ya been?" Wakka exclaimed.

"Hey Wakka, needed to talk to you and keep me company"

"Well, my house is your house ya? Sorry sorry, come in please."

The house, though small was quite cosy, I was glad it was so because the outside was starting to get cold from the sun setting and the cold breeze that is begining to pick up in welcome for winter.

"So what ya come here for? Tidus if there's one thing I know bout ya, it's you come for a reason ya?"

Wakka was from Besaid, he was highly religious to that matter of fact. His Besaidian accent was extremely heavy, but heck I always knew what he was saying.

"Wakka, I wanted to know more about the Blitzball competition that is coming up."

"You know, it's the usual stuff. I reckon we could very well be considering a Blitzball team which is open for everyone, ya? Great idea isn't it? Lulu the other day mentioned why didn't the school follow Spiran Blitzball rules where both everyone can play. Humans, Ronso, Al-bhed, males and females alike."

"I hadn't thought of that before…" I trailed off as I started to thinking profoundly of this suggestion. Spira did not discriminate between races let alone gender, why would our school but even so how many girls would want to do such a violent sport?

"Hey Tidus, how's it recently? Here's some tea" Lulu walked from the kitchen as she greeted me warmly.

"Oh, Lulu how are you? And how's the baby?" Wakka and Lulu's child had recently been born but they have yet to name him so everyone seems to refer to him as 'the baby' which to me sounds awfully awkward.

"Just fine however it's a hassle. Wakka, I have some books which I need you to deliver, could you..." she mentioned as she hurried back to the kitchen. Steam hissed out of the kitchen door, and the fresh smell of dinner was tempting indeed. Just as she rushed in, the baby upstairs could be heard crying loudly.

"Sounds like trouble, listen Tidus ya? Could you deliver the books instead?" Wakka pointed upstairs implying that the baby is going to take some time.

"Sure thing, no problem. Who and where to?"

"Yuna's house, do you know where that is? …" he trailed off as he bolted halfway up the winding stairs.

"Errh.. yeah…I do…" I mumbled, not even sure whether I was happy to hear that or worried as it struck me.

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**So, hows that? A little bit of suspense? hehe, wait till the next chapter, I could pull thing...**


	4. Dumbstruck

****

Ok, heres the next one. This is one of my favourite chapters because it's going to foreshadow the following events in the future.

(Edited 26th December) - Reading everything again, since I totally forgot what happened.

(Edited 27th August 2007) - Again, a few grammatical errors. I wonder how you readers manage... :( my bad

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**Chapter 4: Dumbstruck**

So it turns out, I had to go back to Yuna's house again, second time in one day. This in turn made me thingthat it didn't reflect well on my reputation somehow...don't know why I felt that. Wakka and Lulu had haphazardly dumped a pile of text books on him a few minutes ago, tending to their busy lives respectively which in turn caused me to walk back to my apartment to grab my car. Wanting to have a brief peek at Jecht to see if he was causing any more trouble, I pinched a head in the open slit of the door and peered around. Jecht was where I had left him, paralysed in deep sleep but Shuyin was no where in sight.

And so now I stood outside of Yuna's house and contemplating how I could approach such a problem.

'_Hello Sir, I have brought some books over for Yuna.'_

'_Who are you?'_

'_I am Tidus; I am in her arts class'_

'_But those books aren't art books'_

I imagined the scenario end right there, I couldn't conjure up a response to that. Despite that, I knocked on the door. It was Yuna, who opened the door.

"Oh hey Tidus" perhaps she was both curious and nervous that I had popped up in front of her house again.

"Hey Yuna, Lulu said that you were borrowing some books? Does that ring a bell somewhere? She's busy, so she told me to drop these off for you."

"Hey, I was just waiting for those books. Its dark magic books, and when it comes to that Lulu's the source to go to" she smiled as I handed the books over to her. There was a minute of silence between us and I was starting to get awkward. Behind her a voice shouted.

"Yuna, who's at the door darling?" Perhaps it was time for me to leave; I've dealt with enough problems already today.

"It's Tidus, daddy"

"Tidus? Tell him to come in" That wasn't good, not good at all. Yuna's folks wanted to bust me already, even though I haven't even gone out with her yet.

Yuna stepped aside and I walked in. In spite of the exterior designs being magnificent, the interiors were very cosy and, well, 'home-like comforting'.

On the large dinning table decorated with a series of delicate pottery, sat a thin man wearing purple robes. As I approached him, he looked up and eyed me from head to toe.

"Yuna, grab some plates, we are inviting this young man to our dinner tonight." Braska spoke casually, even though I would have expected him to speak in a more formal way considering he was in fact a politician in the high ranks.

"You what? I'm sorry but I can't stay.." I blurted out, though I didn't mean to be rude or anything.

"I insist you stay Tidus. We could have a little chat. Besides we both know Jecht can't cook a thing, so you are better off eating with us."

Both Yuna and I were surprised at the mention of my father's name by Braska, we hadn't expected him to know about my old man.

"How do you…" I trailed on but was cut off by him.

"Yuna, go get something, don't stand about. We can have a nice little chat. It's already dark outside, lets show our guest some hospitality."

Compelled to leave, but also wanting to know the reason why this man knew so much about my father, I pull a seat at the furnished table.

"Tidus, you might be surprised to know this, but I am friends with your father."

Lord Braska? Friends with _my Old Man_? You've got to be joking right? My father was a slum, even though he did becoming the star of the Zanarkand Blitzball team, but a drunk no matter what. Yuna had left the room to do Braska's bidding and now returned and sat on the opposite of me on the elongated table.

"Years back, when we were all in high school Jecht and I used to be the best of friends. He used to be the jock, a tough Blitzer and I was the nerd although I did play a bit of Blitzball myself and come to like it."

"I never knew my old man knew about you, Sir. I never recall him mentioning you at all" Although this was an average occasion, it felt so formal. At the corner of my eye, I saw a few servants walking around and placing dishes on the table, but didn't concentrate of that, I was more interested at what Braska has got to say. ( I must admit, although Yuna is the lady of the house, she still does chores)

"That's because right after university, we had a huge fight and we went our separate ways." Braska said, as he forked some salad into his bowl.

"Why is that daddy?" Yuna questioned, intrigued at this weird dinner talk.

"It was because of Elaine"

"My mother?" I blurted out again, Braska was full of surprises.

"Yes, you see it seems that we both fell in love with the same woman. Elaine was beautiful, kind and smart. Actually, I was dating her since high school but Jecht stole her away from me. I didn't want to continue harming our friendship, so I gave up on Elaine and continued with my life. It hurts me to know that she passed away a few years ago; I knew I should have taken better watch of her. Jecht doesn't know anything about women." Braska stopped there and chewed on his food.

I had stopped eating the moment I heard it was my mother we were talking about. It truly surprised me of this unknown history. Braska and my mother?

"Why are you telling me this, Sir?"

"I think you deserve to know about the past." Braska said.

"I don't mean to be rude, but what did my mother feel about this?"

"Her? She was confused as ever. Stuck between two men wasn't a nice situation to be in. Jecht was an athletic man, the look which all women desire so I couldn't blame her for being unfaithful to me."

"Daddy, so you dated Tidus's mum? Why didn't you seize her if you really loved her?"

"Simply because she wanted a happy life with Jecht, I didn't want to deprive her of a happy life."

"You thought she will have a happy life with Jecht?" I stated, slightly angrily as I repeated Braska's words.

"Yes, I truly did" he said bitterly. Perhaps it was the lemons in the food, or his words that tasted so sour, I didn't know. I did know one thing those, when he said those words he showed evidence of great sorrow and regret.

"I just wanted to get to know Elaine's family, as a kind of compensation, if that is what you want to call it."

"I don't get what you mean sir" I raised an eyebrow, thoroughly confused at his intentions.

"Never mind" was all he said. By this time we had mostly finished eating so the conversation failed to continue, even though I was keen to know more of my mother's history. Even though I was the guest, I still decided to help out washing the dishes seeing the vast amount of plates on the know, follow Yuna's lead. Dining at Yuna's, was like dining at a premium restaurant though I had no idea whether Yuna cooked or someone else did. I had insisted, so now Yuna and I were scrubbing away as two high towers of dishes.

"I didn't mean to bother your family rhythm Yuna" I started to apologise for letting her hear about her father being faithful to another woman other than her mother.

"It's okay Tidus, I don't mind. I hadn't even put that as one of my priorities yet. I am actually thinking about my academics."

"You seem to concentrate too much on studies, you should find time for you to relax and take in your youth."

She scoffed at the idea of taking time off, well in my opinion she was the kind of person to focus on studies. She seemed very stressed and caged in. Even though I didn't know her very well, I knew that she was the type of person to keep everything inside her and take responsibilities for other people's problems.

"Even the time I don't spend studying in my room, I teach other people how to study" she laughed grimly, a sad sad smile it was. That expression wasn't the type of smile to come from a seventeen year old year trying to enough her life. It wasn't.

"Tell you what, Yuna. There's a party this weekend at Rikku's, take some time off and learn how to be a seventeen year old" I suggested, as I continued to scrap at the stains and warming it with hot water.

"I don't know…I have commitments like…homework"

"It's the weekend Yuna, you've got to have some time to do work."

"I'm not so sure about that…" she murmured, as she applied some extra detergent onto her sponge.

"Besides, Paine, Lenne… will also be there. They are your friends aren't they?" I tried to suggest more reasons for her to go to this party.

"I guess I'll give up trying to argue against you, I have no chance. Daddy will probably let me to go my cousin's house; I'll ask him about it."

"That's great!" I exclaimed, simultaneously stacking two clean plates onto the drying rack and sighing when the last of the dishes were processed.

"Inch by inch, life's a cinch." I laughed at the metaphorical and literal meaning of that sentence which Yuna had told me, very ironical description of the dishwashing.

I walked out of Yuna's large kitchen to hear Braska cry out

"That's fine by me, Yuna you really should be more social. Society offers more than what school can offer. Honey, I'll be out on a trip this weekend, I'll phone Cid to let you stay over for the weekend if you want"

"Sir, I think it's time I've went home to my old man. It's been a great dinner. Did I mention, nice dinnertime stories too" I gave him a look, and he smiled at me and farewelled me.

---

The following day was a Friday. I hadn't attended our 'lunchtime group meetings' for a fair time now so I decided to hook up with my friends. It's been a busy week for me, organising Blitzball with Wakka, and also trying to complete arts project before the deadline. I strolled up to an outdoor cafeteria across the school, and casually sat on the seats under a huge umbrella. It wasn't a sunny day so there wasn't much sunlight to cover up.

"Tidus, I thought you disappeared mate!" Baralai joked as he greeted me. He was also an old friend of Gippal and me.

"You wished I disappeared, that means you might have a chance at getting into Blitzball as a captain." I put on a huge grin, and peered around the crowded table at the other group members. It wasn't really a group, more like a club with closely bonded friends.

"Gippal, how was your day with Riks? Manage to find something good?" I asked

"What do you reckon?" Gippal peered at Rikku, who was busy stuffing her face with desserts already.

"Uv luinca, fryd tet oui aqbald. Ed'c sa!" Rikku chirped happily. I was utterly confused at what Rikku just said. Sometimes when Rikku is extremely happy or angry, she reverts back to her Al bhed origins. I stared at Gippal for a clue at what Rikku said. Gippal just laughed at ruffled his girlfriend's hair.

"Don't do that!" Rikku shouted loudly and jumped up to tidy her hair. Everyone around the table couldn't resist laughing at their mutual relationship. Then at the corner of my eye, I saw Yuna sitting next to Lenne.

"Lenne, could I have a minute with you?" I asked as she stood up and walked to me.

"It's Shuyin, he seems to have left the house last night. Do you have any idea where he's gone?" I continued.

"No, I don't. What happened?"

"He left a message on the table when I got home, saying that he was going to find a job somewhere else because he couldn't handle living with my old man."

By this time, everyone had overheard our conversation, and was staring intently at what Lenne's reaction was. But Lenne remained silent and looked at her toes.

"I think he's left us for good" I blurted out, as I didn't want to believe it was true or not.

---

The rest of the day flowed slowly until school officially ended. Whilst everyone rushed home, I ran to the Blitz stadium and started doing laps and doing various moves as a training course. I didn't want to lose my techniques just before a competition. It was almost seven when I left the stadium.

I cursed at myself, as I realised that I had forgotten that Shuyin had taken the car and thus this forced me to walk home in the dark. The night was damp and cold. My foot hit the pavement hard and the sound echoed in the gloom. Above my head, there were glowing spheres which lighted dimly of the pathway along the road. I had passed a few shops by a small town when I heard a scream and a few figures hiding behind a shadow. Something was wrong. Where they fiends?

I bolted towards those figures, but they vanished faster than a gust of wind. _Must have scared them away_ I thought to myself. I peered into the darkness to see the reason for their actions, and I realised a familiar figure. Yuna.

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**So, hows that:P Left another cliffhanger for you guys. Believe me, that's not going to be the only one. R & R :)**


	5. Weirdo Guy

**Sorry for my readers ( but I had a mild case of writers block. Reading a story is one thing but writing a story is a totally different thing. I know what is going happen except I can't fill in the blanks between them :S **

**(Edited 26th December 2008)**

**(Edited 27th August 2007) - Very minor changes.**

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**Chapter 5: Weirdo Guy**

I instantly bolted into the narrow lane of the two buildings shrouded with darkness and squinted into the utter blackness. I could hear the footsteps of the other figures which had run away down the footpath, but decided that it wasn't the major priority in this current situation. I closed in on Yuna's position, trying to get a better glimpse of her.

"Tidus…?" she whispered feebly as I saw that she was in a sitting position, leaning next to a wall. Now that my eyes had adjusted to the grim dark atmosphere, I was able to see that Yuna was having trouble getting back up into a standing pose. Seeing this, I went forward and lifted her gently, feeling the light weight of her body and the thin arms of hers. She was limping pretty badly, so I helped her out into the sphere powered streetlamp sidewalk. It was possible to see now that she had cuts and bruises all over her, a small cut on her arm and a bit of her clothes is ripped apart. If I hadn't come in time, who knows what could have happened.

"Are you alright?" I asked, as I gasped a little when I saw a badly swollen ankle, and some bruises on her leg.

"I think I'm okay …just a little weak…" and I caught her before she collapsed onto the freezing pavement. She must have been through a lot just then, she's so tired, there didn't seem to be much life threatening injuries on her, so after seeing this I relaxed slightly. At the corner of my eye I saw a stranger who wore a large coat which went from his feet to high up in his neck. His blue hair strayed down outside the coat, and floated in the air when a sudden breeze picked up. He was eyeing me queerly.

Fearing that he might be a drunk or a gangster, I said to Yuna "Look, I'll get you out of here first. Can you get up?"

"No, I can't seem to move. Body seems to be paralysed." At the very least, she's gotten her speech ability back, and didn't faint like I half expected her to, a few minutes ago. Without a second thought, I picked her up and ran up the street.

"Where are we going?" she asked, a few minutes later, it seems she had her eyes half open.

"Taking you to the hospital"

"No, please don't. Family issues…media issues..."

"Your home then"

"Daddy's on business trip remember?"

I sighed, and recalled yesterday when Braska announced his trip. Well, I took her to the only other place I knew which was safe.

The night sang, along with the nocturnal owls which are hooting at the beat of its wings. A small wind blew the trees on the sidewalk, I could sense Yuna in my arms start to shiver a bit. I couldn't blame her because she wasn't wearing much to protect her from the frosty night. I carefully leant her shivering body against a fence, and wrapped my jacket around her. She still had her eyes closed, but a faint movement at the side of her mouth showed that she was smiling a little. Just a little.

I held her close, feeling her warmth starting to generate. She felt so small, and fragile. I wanted to protect her, I felt like I needed to protect her. I had to admit, I did have feelings for her, and perhaps even before I started art class…perhaps that's the reason why I joined… perhaps, for that was something I myself couldn't even find out.

Her head was against my chest, breathing softly and her hair lifted slightly from each step I took. She looked at peace, lovely and also cute. It was quite disturbing. I couldn't concentrate on walking straight, after all I was a teenage boy and in my arms was an extremely hot girl. I looked away, I was human nevertheless, trying to not to think about it too much. Yuna wasn't like any other girl I've messed around with, even though that was the quite some time ago since I did mess around with any. I didn't like to mention it to anyone, let alone myself. Like I said, Yuna was different. She was special.

Jecht wasn't home, which was definitely a good thing. Must be drinking. The sphere clock read **_7:59pm_**, as it beeped loudly when it alerted the new hour. I put Yuna down on the bed, and listened to her breathing in and out. I was in a trance when she stirred a little, her chest heaving up and down as her eyes opened up. Those mismatched eyes, they were beautiful.

"How are you going beautiful? Feeling better?" I asked as continued to glare at the set emerald green and sapphire blue eyes.

"My foot hurts…" she whispered lightly, I watched the way those lips parted, stunned for a moment and wordless.

Deciding that asking for the reason why she was brutally attacked wasn't the correct time and order of things, I turned my head to get a better glimpse of her foot. Under the cream glow of the sphere lighting, I could see the swell which had grew from initial contact. Quickly grabbing some ice in the refrigerator and cloth to wrap it around, I applied it on her wound. Yuna lied there on her back, raising and turning her head from time to time, like a patient with no idea how injured they are. She didn't cry or whimper like most girls did, and in a way she was brave in her own sense. Figuring that applying some soothing muscle aching cream could ease the pain a little, I started to rub the ointment in a circular motion around her pressure points on her foot. ( It was something I saved for Shuying and me when it was one of those 'bad' times) At first, Yuna blushed and her whole face turned red when I touched her, obviously her father had been restricting her contact with the other gender.

"Hows that? Better?" I asked as I turned to help her get up a bit.

"I still feel a bit weak…no strength…" she spoke and I turned to face her.

"Rest a bit, relax" I said as I leaned forward and faced her.

"I'll try" I could feel her warm breath blowing gently against my face. She was getting slightly nervous, but I kind of liked the game of toiling with her feelings. That thought quickly escaped my mind.

"I'm sure you will try" I gave her a wink, and gave her a grin. We were physically quite close, and I was beginning to receive mischievous thoughts from my mind. She was unique, and shy. I thought I was about to kiss her goodnight, but she closed her glistering eyes as if trying to control herself too. Before she opened them, I had turned off the lights and left the room. Before I lost control of myself...

That went well… I said to myself sarcastically. Totally let Yuna think that you were the type of guy who lays girls for a living. Just like everyone else does.

I couldn't sleep well that night. I wasn't because of the fact that I was wrapping myself in a thin blanket on my couch but rather my thoughts were crowded. I needed answers. A myriad of events had bombarded themselves into my life and I hadn't figured out a way to deal with them yet. The most striking was the reason why Braska had said what he said… and the other, Yuna. The last few days I've thought too much about Yuna. It's just like a branch of a tree, I start off in some isolated leaf but every trail leads to the stem, Yuna. That place that Yuna was attacked and the shadows which seem to disappear as soon as I approached them, that wasn't normal. Why was she attacked? What were the attackers' motives and intentions? Why on earth would they have anything against a school girl like Yuna? It could be possible because of Braska's political schemes; there may be many political enemies of Braska. No matter what, that wasn't the reason to pick on a girl. Yuna, how could she feel? She was a strong girl, but with a father like that, who knows what could happen. Tidus don't wonder so much, you do realise that curiosity killed the cat, I said to myself.

The cool evening air whistled across the treetops, creating the music of the night. My lounge room window was slightly ajar, and as the wind forced it's way between the sill and the frame of the window, it created sounds melodically. An eerie sensational crept along my spinal cord, I shivered a little. Reaching out my hand to slide the window shut, I glared outside to pursue an object into which to calm my nerves. The moon ahead, blazed brightly as it shone like a jewel in the cloudless sky. A pearl of the night, just like Yuna. I thought about the resemblance of Yuna with the creaming moon. Then I spotted someone. I initially thought it was my father, though he rarely returns home after he's had a couple of jugs but it was a guess. He was staring at me, with death cold eyes and a scar across his face. Those eyes, blue but they had something else, something deadly. The essence of murder. Long strands of hair defied gravity and stood in ends with jagged peaks and suspended troughs. Those piercing eyes. I remembered now, this was the man whom walked passed us a few hours ago at the scene of the attack.

I sprang towards the door, and slid down the staircase. This guy knew something about Yuna. I know it, I just do. It was very suspicious. The stairs, the gate, and finally the street. But no man, no blue hair and no death piercing eyes.

---

Hot air blowing on my face. A fire? No. And this was how I waken that morning. Yuna's glowing face a few centimetres away from mine, she had a wide smile. Carefree and happy, that's the Yuna I know.

"Morning Mr Lazy, time to wake up and cook me something. I'm starving" she emphases on the word _starving_ by pretending she was going to die of starvation.

"Correction m'am, Mr Lazy here saved your life yesterday." I chuckled as I stared about at her sparkling eyes. To my great reluctance, she stood up and hopped around on one foot like a small sparrow.

"How's your foot?" I rubbed my eyes trying to shrug the sleepiness out of my system.

"It's getting better already!" she jumped around on her good foot and pull a smile.

"I wonder how you heal so fast" I mumbled as I mocked her a little before getting up entirely from the couch to grab her and help her sit down on it.

"I have a lot of protein" huge grin "so it's now your turn to fill me up with protein". She was livelier than usual, and more optimistic.

I had trouble preparing breakfast, as you know Jecht isn't the type of father to go shopping so the house lacks some food, so I grabbed the box of cereal from the top of the refrigerator (I like to keep it there) and warmed some milk for Yuna. Figuring that cereal would be too plain for a guest, I cracked open an egg to make some omelette. There was also a can of baked beans in the cupboard so I decided to add that into the breakfast menu too. Yuna sat there quietly watching me multitask the various things I was trying to complete. Finally the food was ready to be eaten and she did look like she hadn't eaten for days. I had given her the majority of the food, she did seem like she needed it more than I did.

"So Yuna, there's something I wanted to ask you." I started, as I poured some cold milk into the Blitzball cereal (cereal in the shape of blitzballs).

She instantly stopped her munching about, which to me looked quite naïve and somewhat cute.

"Did you see who attacked you last night?" I continued.

She looked down reluctant to speak. All the happiness in her a minute ago faded and was replaced by a grim outlook.

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**I wonder what Yuna is going to say after Tidus's question:) R & R please :) and Thank you all for you support :P**

**Self Note: This paragraph is hard to write, it didn't turn out to be what I intended, but heck I'm not totally displeased. I thought it turned out alright. My 'other' scenario was too hard to write.**


	6. The Beast

**Yay, this chapter took me ages. Sorry :( Even though it's only 100 words more than usual...from 2000 to 2100... it took so long to write up. I was extremely busy. I guess my updating speed will slow down a bit from now. But dont worry :P I'll update asap :P**

**Thanks for the reviews you guys submitted :P I managed to implement description on clothing. Great comment indeed. Appreciate the help. hehe no ones perfect...anyways enjoy**

**(Edited 26th December 2008) **

**(Edited 27th August 2007) - Most horrible chapter yet in terms of content description. Perhaps that day i was rushing things. Anyways there's not much to add except total bull...so.. I'll leave it this way.**

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**Chapter 6: The Beast**

Yuna stayed silent, she looked quite uncomfortable under my intense glare. She seemed as if she didn't know what to say. I didn't want to apply extra pressure on her, if it was unnecessary.

"Yuna, if you don't want to me know, I'm fine with that." I tried to comfort her, and continued stirring the cereal with the milk. She remained quiet as she sipped her milk, not looking once at me.

"Hey, I just remembered, its Rikku's party tonight. I was looking forward to it all week, but ever since that dinner at your place I've seemed to have forgotten entirely about it." I started, trying my best to turn a new leaf in terms of a topic.

"I guess its nice having a break, like you said." She commented as she scraped the dish which had omelettes a minute ago and moved onto the cereal.

"Yuna, you can really eat. Do you want some more?"

"Thanks, I'm fine now. I was really starving"

Not long after breakfast, I heard heavy unsteady footsteps approach the door. A sudden fear struck me, as those thudding sounds implied someone I dreaded to see. Especially now. The word 'Jecht' rang loudly in my mind, as I frantically tried to think of a solution. Normally during this time of the day, I would be training in some Sphere pool somewhere in Zanarkand, just to avoid him. And today was a Saturday, so no school. Without thinking I dumped the dishes into the sink and mentioned quietly for Yuna to go into my room. Jecht. The keys turning. Jecht. The door creaking.

Shutting the bedroom door behind me as I squeezed passed, I clicked the lock on the nob. I knew, for now, we were safe. Yuna was quite confused at the notion that her breakfast was interrupted, at the most random of times, and she was forced to 'hideout' in my bedroom. I admit, it was peculiar. Ignoring Yuna, I pushed the side of my ear against the door, attempting to hear what Jecht was doing. Amidst a grunt and bellowing, the screeching of a chair against the floor could also be heard.

By now Yuna was glaring, she frowned (good thing she knew it was of her best intentions to stay quiet) and she just stared. I grabbed a piece of paper and started scratching some words onto it.

_My Old man is back_

She veered around to take a glance. Then she looked up still confused.

_He's a drunk_

She took the pen out of my hands and added to my writing.

_So?_

_He's violent_

_So?_

_He doesn't like visitors _

_And he does what do them?_

That question caused a blank stare from me. I honestly didn't know what he would do to a stranger; keeping in mind he treats his sons like enemies on the frontline. With a crunched fist, and a swift movement upwards, I signified the notion of a possible outcome. She stared more, if that was physically possible.

_We can't go out, just stay quiet_

She nodded.

A dreaded silence. Since I have the time now, I'll reflect upon what has happened. Essentially the rate of me seeing Yuna has increased exponentially over the past few days. Yes, I have a crush on her since, what? Year 9? But that's not the point. Now Yuna's father has come into my life saying he has dated my mother. Weird… yes I do admit that. Especially when Yuna's father is a maester ranked official in Zanarkand politics. She's been brought up in the life of rich and glory, and incredible fame. It's amazing she's not spoilt like the other wealthy girls. Instead of choosing some rich private school like Bevelle North Academy of Girls, or Zanarkand B West College, she chose Zanarkand A East High school for poor deprived kids like me. Those prestigious, academically striving schools pose no interest for her. In a way I admire her, but I wouldn't know because I was brought up learning to care for myself. And now she gets attacked by a group of gangsters and druggies most likely. It's so stressing that my life has been accelerated forwards.

At the peak of my stress, I have an extremely hot looking girl, sitting on the floor leaning against the side of my bed. She was innocently sketching on my notebook, which was positioned on her upright knees. She was wearing an unzipped fur coat with skimpy tank top. I had simply no idea why she was wearing the brownish coat along with a bright pink tank top, perhaps it didn't go together but more importantly it was autumn not summer. I admit I did have an evil thought creep along the back of my mind when I slowly aimed my eyes at an extremely short skirt coupled along with a beautiful set of legs. The curvature showed off her slim body and sleek legs. If I just moved in front of her… I could see… Tidus, get a hold of yourself! You've barely talked to her, what makes you think she's even interested in you.

I moved forward silently, keeping in mind Jecht was still outside, I slipped onto my bed and peered down from behind her head to see what she was drawing. It was someone with a blitzball and holding it up, grinning proudly. Wait…that's me! I inched closer to glare intently on the sketch. My cheek is centimetres away from her blushed warm cheeks. Perhaps my breath was hitting her smooth skin, but she flinched at the sheer idea of a guy next to her. Her pencil stopped moving, and she froze there.

"Who have you drawn there?" I whispered gently in her ear, playing with the notion that she was unskilled at flirting.

"Umm…I don't…know..." she mumbled, as she dropped the pencil on the floor creating a clattering sound. Soon after, I could hear footsteps thudding towards the locked door. Jecht, he's aware of that someone's in the house. Frantically I searched my small room for an exit. There's the window, which I normally use to climb out into the adjacent balcony. Wait, Yuna's foot is sprained. Table…chair… bed... bed! I signalled Yuna to hid under the single bed, and dived under it myself soon after, trying to be as discrete as possible.

Thump thump thump. Jecht's knocking on the door became louder, louder, louder! Crack! The lock split open, sending waves of splint and metal pieces flying outwards, much like an explosion. Jecht grunted, peering around and stamping around the wooden floor sending shockwave like quakes under the bed where Yuna and I hid.

Amidst the bright light, I saw the silhouette of a pencil and a small white notepad. We are so in for…Yuna forgot to hide it. Jecht saw it too. He fumbled towards it and picked it up looking fiercely at the drawing. In a second, he ripped out the page and scrunched it up, tossing it at a corner of the room. I feared that the pounding of my heart could be heard by Jecht's keen senses. Yuna was wide eyed, cowering behind me, pressed against the wall.

When I thought the worst thing that could happen today was over, I felt completely defeated by the next thing that occurred. Jecht let his weight fall upon the small bed and started snoring almost instantly.

I held Yuna's hand to try and ease some of her fear; she was at the brink of whimpering out aloud. I knew she was a strong mature girl, but after seeing the perilous and violent nature of Jecht, I guess she was wrong. Not everyone is as caring and noble as her father. Making sure with every millimetre I moved that it didn't cause the slightest sound, I turned around to face Yuna directly. I was extremely close to her, so I was able to see every detail of her face. Her light brown strands of hair, her soft lips, and her fine eyebrows. Observing her further, I discovered the beautiful ocean blue eye pairing nicely with a nature green one, the set of eyes I noticed last night. I moved even closer still, mentioning that we should leave as soon as possible. She replied with a soft nod.

Jecht jerked a little, causing chaos on the structure of the bed, at least that's what it looked like from below. The faster we get out, the better for both of us. Without Shuyin, I knew I couldn't handle Jecht. I crept slowly, sliding on the furnished floorboards until I was completely out. Realising I still had Yuna's small hand in my own, I pull her gently out too. Jecht was just snoozing loudly. I noticed the ruins that my room was in, cracked splints everywhere. If I could groan in a situation like this I would, but of course Jecht was here, so I just shook my head in annoyance. There was a heavy dent on the door itself, showing the impact of Jecht's fists as it struck the wood. Without a second thought, we both crept out of the frontline of the war zone and out of the explosion zone of the beast.

"Phew, that was too close" I said as we strolled along on the road right under my bedroom window. I looked up at the window of my bedroom, trying to check out the status of the room.

"That is your dad?" she said, still breathless and surprised.

"You bet he is. Not everyone is like your dad, a wise educated Maester."

"So, where are we headed now?"

It was _we_, wasn't it? I seriously had no clue. Firstly, we have an unknown gangster stalking Yuna, and now my old man's madness.

"Do you want to go over to my house? I need a change of clothes…" she offered kindly. She did have a bandage here and there on the wound inflicted last night.

"Sure, we'll just drive there."

Ten minutes later, we arrived at the large house again.( We have two cars, the one I share with Shuyin and Jecht's one. So now I'm using Jecht's one. He won't be needing it anyways, whilst he's drunk) Yuna had ran upstairs to change into something more discrete, although I did like what she was wearing now, but it caused too much attention directed at her. During a time like this, it wasn't such a good thing. I peek at the humongous grandfather sphere clock in the living room showed 1:35pm. The experience with Jecht took longer than expected. One word to describe Yuna's house, rich. I flicked on the large plasma sphere and opened the Blitzball channel. Moments later, footsteps coming down from the staircase revealed a casually dressed Yuna. She had a pink top with a small hood and cute light blue jeans. My attire was probably more casual as it consisted of my 'usual', my blue top, also with a hood and also light blue jeans. Weird that we were both wearing similar clothing.

"Nice. You look cute." I commented and I turned completely around from the Blitzball game and admired it.

"Thanks" she flushed slightly.

"Yuna, sorry for what happened back at my place. I didn't know my old man would come back so early. And he destroyed that caricature that you just drew"

"Don't worry about it, neither of us are hurt. I was planning to give it to you, as a present for saving me. I'll draw another one." she gave me the sweetest smile I've ever seen. Cute.

"Like I said, before I got interrupted by my old man, I want you to relax for a bit. You know, become like a normal teenager. Heck, it's almost the graduation test; we should relax a bit just before our examinations start."

She seemed to agree, so I continued,

"Rikku's party should start at six-ish."

"Tidus, I know. She's my cousin."

"Oh", wow shock shock "great that means you would know most of the people." I gave her my Blitzball grin.

We chatted for quite a bit, I was kind of enjoying her company now because she wasn't the 'nerd' that I always thought she was. Her balance between life and school was…healthy, unlike mine. Soon it was time to go to Rikku's house for the party.

"Tidus, we should go now" she reminded me of the time.

"Yuna, I like to show up late. Gives me a sense of…" I paused, trying to find suitable word.

"A sense of being Tidus" she announced, her mouth wide open with an extremely happy smile.

My cell sphere rang, and I picked it up annoyingly. I liked the carefree, happy Yuna now, if only I could take a snapshot of her.

"_Yo bro it's me"_

_---_

"Who's that?" Yuna asked in curiously.

"It's my brother Shuyin. You know him, he is Lenne's boyfriend."

"Oh, so what happened?" She knew that the conversation hadn't been very long.

"He said he is safe. And he said he's breaking up with Lenne."

* * *

**Sorry if I was getting repetitive, but I wrote up the first half of this then had a week break. Author's block is really getting to me. Just a simple note, I think this story would get more 'adult' or rather 'adult themes' later on. Might need to change the ratings later on. I dont know. The twist is still to come, I'm getting to it...lol...it'll take some time.. perhaps in three more chapters...Anyways, I love your reviews ) ..till next time... **


	7. Your First time?

**This chapter was a hassle...but it's finally done :P yay, time to rest a bit...This one's longer than usual. Writers block again, still trying to find out what happens. lol, and you were trying to ask me what happens ? ) I dont even know! Anyways here it is.**

**(Edited 26th December 2008)**

**(Edited 27th August 2007)**

* * *

**Chapter 7: Your First time?**

"He's what?" Yuna asked surprisingly, whilst she went through her gallery of shoes trying to pick one that fitted with her clothes.

"Shuyin said," I began repeating myself "He needed some time of his own, he didn't say much about it though. All I know is that he's not in Zanarkand anymore and that he doesn't want to be back anytime soon. Yeah and that part about breaking up with Lenne, I thought their relationship never started... but anyhow... I guess he's pretty pissed about my old man." I paused to catch a breath.

"I didn't talk to him much about it, it was a short call. Anyway, it's still too early for the party…" I trailed off.

"I don't know Tidus, what shall we do?" Perhaps it's the way she said it, the sensation of her flirtatious tone and an equally flirtatious smile afterwards. Two can play at that game.

"Well, I have something in mind actually…just that I don't know if you're up to the challenge" I said, as I slowly moved towards her, keeping my eyes on her.

"Are you belittling me? Do you think a female can't do what a male can do?" her tone getting a slightly annoyed.

"I know one thing that females can't do, and males can…" I felt her breathing on my face, even her loud pounding heartbeat.

"Oh and what might that be?"

"Want me to show you?" She was so close to me, her small body centimetres away from my own. She started to back away; perhaps she was regretting flirting in the first place. Without a second thought, I pushed her gently onto the couch behind and leaned forward to stare her straight in the face. Moving even closer, I gently kissed her neck.

"Tidus…" she stopped at almost as instantly as I moved my mouth towards hers. Her lips were soft and sweet, like strawberries. The sweetest I've ever kissed. Whatever she wanted to say, she can't now. I was losing control of my rational thought, was I proceeding too fast? She moaned as I tried to play around with her tongue. Her red hot blush on her cheeks deepend as I could tell she was losing it too. Her arms, which were nicely placed on both sides of her body, has found an even nicer place around my neck. The warmth of her body under mine propelled me to push her further, but the look in her eyes said otherwise. Our kiss was getting more lusting by the moment, her cheeks began to blush bright red against her pale white skin. She was hot, both metaphorically and literally.

"Tidus …please stop" she finally said, amidst her heavy breathing. I obeyed, against the will of my out of control body. I was a 17 year of old boy who was high on hormones. Not to mention with an exposed girl whom I had a crush on for 4 years now right under me. The thought of her elegant legs rubbing against mine intoxicated me with evil ideas. Testosterone blazed through my body as if dictating my actions. Slowly I reached to unzip her out layer of clothing.

"Tidus, stop…now" she repeated, pushing me away from her.

"What?" I replied confused, although I had stopped I flipped her around so she above me, lying against my chest.

"I think I'm not ready yet."

"Okay". Tidus? Is that it? Tidus the almighty backs off from a girl just because she's unwilling? What's gotten into you?

I closed my eyes; her hair sprawled over my face emitting a mild fragrance of jasmine.

"Tidus, can we stay like this forever?" she whispered, sheepishly rubbing her head and almost falling asleep.

"Not forever, I want to be like this for longer than forever." I said dumbly.

"Silly, there's nothing longer than forever" her voice getting weaker as she was falling more into a sleeping state.

---

Yuna started twitching as she awoke from a peaceful slumber. I held her closely, and kissed her on the forehead the moment she opened her bi coloured eyes.

"What time is it?" she mumbled and struggled to get upright.

"I don't know" as I also tried to get up and have a peak at the time.

"It's six already! We're late" she exclaimed as she ran towards a large mirror and straighten her hair.

"No we're not. We're on schedule. By the way, your hair looks better the way it was before."

She scoffed and continued to comb her hair.

Twenty minutes later, I parked the car on the curb of Rikku's house. I was surprised that there was even a space, considering I could hear the loud screams of a whole town of people inside. Yuna flinched at the idea of closing in a house with such loud music.

"Your first time?"

She nodded, but continued to walk up the path towards the door. It was slightly ajar so we just casually strolled in. Lights flashed overhead, as I held Yuna's hand to walk across the packed dance floor. She squeezed my hand a little and winced at the blazing lights and beating tempo of the music. Finally I spotted who I was searching for, the gang.

"Hey Tidus, late as usual huh?" Gippal screamed inches away from my ears.

"Hell yeah!" I yelled also at the climax of my lungs.

"Ti, drinks are at the usual place. Feel at home. You too, cous. " Rikku popped her head out from behind Gippal's.

Dragging Yuna behind me, I pull her over to the kitchen bench and scourged the debris. There were a myriad of aluminium cans and glass bottles floating around.

"It's much quieter here. Oh Yevon, I'm having a splitting headache already." She complained as she found a stool next to the bench.

"I guess there's good insulation…here it is." I said, handing her a bottle of vodka.

"What's this?" she said, turning the bottle around and around in her hands.

"It's a drink, try it", I opened it for her and let her drink it.

She coughed as soon as she tried to drink it. I laughed as her naiveness of never touching acholic drinks.

"That was a mean trick! One day, I'll get you back for it." She threatened as she bent over the sink.

"I didn't think it was _that_ bad the first time I had one" I commented and helped her sit on the stool again.

"And plus, how do you stand this music, it's like someone's trying to break your eardrums or something"

"I gotten used to it, wonder why I'm sometimes deaf?" I smirked and we both got back to the group. I could see Gippal who was cradling Rikku on his lap, and intoxicating himself with a bottle of rum with his other hand.

"Ti, my hands a pretty busy as you can see, just help yourself" as he pointed the bottle of rum towards a low table full of food.

"Rikku, Cid would so kick your ass if he sees you like this" Paine cocked her head and sat on a chair behind the sofa at which Gippal was sitting.

"Well, Old Cid isn't here. Otherwise I would get kicked in the butt too" Gippal announced as he waved the rum proudly, as if it was a sign of victory.

"You wouldn't dare either" Rikku said rolling her eyes.

"Says who!" as he ruffled his girlfriend's hair, her blonde coils flying loose from its original position.

"Alright kiddies, time for bed" I joked, and sat on the table behind. Yuna decided that the couch was the best place to sit so she sat beside her cousin and Gippal.

"Baralai" Paine called and pointed to the kitchen for more alcohol. She wasn't the type to speak; perhaps she thinks actions speak louder than words. Or was it due to the fact that the music was too loud. Either way, it worked as Baralai obediently stood up and left for the kitchen.

"Good work Paine"

"Shut up Nooj"

These were my best friends, they always made me laugh and sometimes vice versa. I've had a great time in my high school laughing and joking around with them. Understanding friends, not just normal friends.

"Hey guys, I'll go mingle." I mentioned towards the dance floor.

"That's not nice Tidus, Yuna feels lonely!" Le Blanc said as she cooed Nooj in front of everyone. Despite the way she said it, I felt that she was right.

"Woh, Tidus blushing? That's a rare sight" Gippal mocked me, as he pretended he had a camera sphere and was taking a picture of me.

"Shut up Gippal. Come on lets go Yuna" I grabbed Yuna's hand and dragged her along. I don't know why I did that, but I didn't want people to tease her just because I like her.

"Tidus, wait…you are not the boss of me! Stop it, what are you doing?" she said confused and slightly angry. Behind her, I noticed my friends yelling things like "Go Tidus!" or "Go get her!" I ignored them completely.

"Yuna, do you want to dance?"

She was surprised, but quick to hide that.

"At least you could have asked me nicely." She said, as she stared as me pretending to be angry.

"I'm sorry, next time I'll be more polite" scratching my head, not knowing if she would reject or accept my offer.

"I don't know how to dance"

"Your first time again?" She nodded.

"Just feel natural" as I danced to the beat of an incredibly energetic and fast beating sound. She was following what I did, waving hands in the air, shaking hips, the whole lot. And she was hot! I couldn't imagine that she could move so well, as my mind absently I tried to picture her in bed….

"Tidus what's wrong?"

"Err, umm nothing, just thinking…just thinking…"

"Thinking about?"

"You"

"Me?"

"Yeah you"

"About?"

"How I love you" well, that wasn't exactly a lie, it was truth to a certain extent.

She looked away. Then the music changed, to a slow moving, free flowing one.

"This one's nice" she said, as I advanced and grabbed her by the waist and danced to the rhythm.

"What are you doing? I don't know how to dance"

"I'll teach you"

To my surprise she was a quick learner, and gotten used to the footsteps before the song finished.

"You have a natural talent at this" I said, in spite of her stepping onto my foot a few times. She blushed. It was rather cute because she looked down, and her cheeks flushed red.

"Tidus, thank you. For the dance and for …" she paused. Behind her, Baralai and Gippal popped their heads out and gave me a huge grin. Yuna sensed that something was going on, so she turned back just in time to see my friends started to mock me by pretending to hug one and another.

"Guys…can't we have some quiet time?"

"Firstly Ti, it's a party! Part-tee! Not a quiet party, but a LOUD parteeee. Secondly, why don't you two get a ROOM?" Gippal said, he was quite drunk indeed.

"Gippal, how much did you drink?" Yuna questioned, she was quite concerned which made me kind of jealous. But further thinking told me that she was just worried about her cousin's boyfriend.

"Not enough" Gippal said, leaning on Baralai for support.

"Yuna, Tidus. Nooj told us to go back to the lounge; he said something about playing a game." Baralai said, clearly he was sober. Son of a Praetor, rich and high classed, just as high classed as Yuna.

"What's he up to now?" I said, quite annoyed that my dance with Yuna was going to be interrupted.

"Tidus, it could be fun!" Yuna said gleefully.

"Yeah sure" I said, trying to sound interested. After all, since when did Nooj know anything fun? Le Blanc is a perfect example.

"Yunie! Yunie! Come here! Nooj was just about to explain the rules!" Rikku squealed, jumping up and down happily.

By this time, which was about eleven according to my sphere watch, the 'public' party was over. I could see a bunch of guys holding girls and walking out the door. Rikku's party was 'special' because the latter half was just us, her best friends.

"Okay guys, here's the rules. We are split into teams of two. We have a series of competitions, much like the Olympics, and the loser has to drink this." He lifted up a large cup of wine.

"Don't underestimate this. It's specially formulated so it's extra strong."

"Teams? Noojee Woogie, I want to be in your team honey" I don't have to say who said that…it was of course Le Blanc.

"Its okay honey, I've got it all planned out. We are paired up with the first person at this party whom we met today." He slipped an arm around Le Blanc's hips and smiled.

"So that means, I'm with Gippal!" Rikku shouted gleefully and ran to Gippal and hugged him.

"That means…I'm with Yuna…because… I saw her this morning…" I said loudly, without knowing what I said.

"This morning?!?!" Everyone instantly turned and stared at me.

"Congratulations Tidus, I didn't know you were so quick" Gippal said as he patted me on the shoulder.

"Shut up Gippal, you've got the wrong idea." I punched Gippal gently on his back.

"So that leaves Baralai and Paine" Rikku said.

Paine scoffed, but walked towards Baralai.

"First match begins. The Rules of this game is simple. A rope is tied so that team mates legs are tied together." Nooj said, as he took out a rope and tied his left foot with Le Blanc's right foot.

"We race around the house, last one drinks the jug"

Oh great, who comes up with such ideas….Nooj. And so, we all lined up next to the kitchen door, ready to race. Much like stooges, might I add. Yuna, who was on my left, looked at me for support.

"Don't worry, we can win this" I said confidently.

"Tidus…did you forget…my foot still hurts…"

My response was a blank stare, we were doomed.

"Ready, set, Go!" Nooj shouted and their team sprang forwards, probably having a fraction of a head start.

"Hey that's cheating!" Rikku yelled as she and Gippal also started moving. What do you call that? Walking with three legs? Whatever it was, I soon discovered it was hard! I didn't want to hurt Yuna's foot, but I also didn't want her to drink the heavy alcohol. Ahead of us, Nooj and Le Blanc were quickly scrambling towards the front door, which was the finishing line. Not far behind, Gippal began picking up Rikku, a shout exchanged, and Gippal carried Rikku over the finishing line.

"Hey! That's cheating!" Le Blanc complained, but she turned around to see Paine and Baralai, Yuna and me, struggling to race. Baralai and Paine didn't have any physical disadvantages; it was rather their _team_ that was their problem.

"Are you alright Yuna? Can you handle it?" I asked, though it was a race, I didn't want anyone to get hurt.

"Left foot! No no… left first!" she shouted as we tried to coordinate the steps.

Paine and Baralai were to some extent behind us throughout the race, but about a few metres in front of the finishing line, Paine seized Baralai and propelled him forward. They rolled over the finish line before us!

"Your last" Paine commented as she got up to untie the rope.

I sighed in surrender as Yuna and I both crossed the finishing line.

"Well well, here it is." Le Blanc held up two large jugs full of a bubbling liquid.

"They cheated! This is so unfair!" I complained as I helped Yuna untie the rope binding our feet together.

"I don't remember rules for not carrying your partner over the line" Gippal snorted and patted me on the shoulder, as if he had won our little discussion.

"Still cheating though." I said as I looked at the scratches and bandages on Yuna's leg to see if they were healed.

"Wow Yunie, what happened to you?" Rikku gestured towards the bruises.

"Oh…nothing. I feel from my stairs and scratched myself. That's all, it was an accident." Yuna replied, not looking directed at either Rikku or me.

"Drink drink drink" Gippal started chanting, holding the jug which he somehow had taken from Le Blanc and placed it right in my face. And so, I took the jug from him and drank it in one go. If I've ever taken rum, vodka, beer, and all the different types of wine at the same time, that would be what it tasted like. I'm not even talk about the taste, but as soon as I finished it, my stomach started to shake and rumble. A reaction effect from my stomach, a huge burp with heavy alcohol smell and it was over. Or so I thought, but I was yet to feel the effects until much later.

I looked at Yuna and her jug too. If I had problems finishing it, Yuna would be in deep trouble.

"Hey, let me finish that Yuna." I called out, groping my hand forward towards the jug.

"No no, team mates can't help!" Nooj said in a stern and reinforcing tone.

"But..." I started mumbling but stopped to see Yuna take the jug and forced it down her throat. Maybe she was fine…or not. As soon as she finished about half the jug, she felt sick. How did I know? I don't know…but I could tell she felt sick. Without a second thought, I took the remaining alcohol and drained it dry. I ran over to Yuna, who was sprawled over the couch, not looking very well.

"Yuna, are you okay?" I asked, and I peered back at the others, just in time to see that they were starting their next 'game'.

"Guys, we'll chill for a while. Play without us" I shouted back and sat on the seat next to Yuna. I stroked Yuna's back hoping that it would help her a little.

"Tidus, I think I love you" Yuna said, slowly inching towards my face

"Errrr, I think you're drunk"

"No! I'm not! I really really like you!" Her mouth touched mine, and she pulled me into a deep kiss.

"Yuna..mmm...I think you've had too much. This isn't what you really want"

"I want you Tidus, I think I'm ready"

I really can't remember what happened later that night. We were both too drunk to recall what actually happened.

---

* * *

**I'm probably more confused that usual, can't seem to find a good filler yet for the next chapter. I promise that something drastic is going to happen soon. Something very very drastic..Thanks for the reviews :) and the support**


	8. Turn around

**My hand hurts... for writing an entire chapter in one night...this update is faster than usual.. Eek! I can't type normally anymore! Okay, it's done! I decided to cut out a filler and shorten it. **

**(Edited 27****th**** August 2008)**

**(Edited 28th August 2007)**

**Chapter 8: Turn around **

I didn't know how long we just sat there, but a strong array of light struck my eyes and made me flutter my eyes a little. I groaned a little, trying to adjust to the strong penetrating brightness.

"You awake?" A soft voice beside me surprised me a little. Where am I? I looked around, trying to see my whereabouts. Then I suddenly remembered, I was still at Rikku's place. We must have fell asleep after Yuna puked last night. Did anything happen? I can't remember a thing.

"Err yeah, I think so" straining my eyes to see the silhouette of the person talking to me.

"My head aches, I can't seem to move my head. It hurts as soon as I try to move it" Yuna complained as I saw her lie on the couch.

"Hang over? I have it sometimes…" I said, "I'm fine, I guess. I'll get you a glass of water and some medicine. Rikku should have those lying around."

"Awww, you should have warned me it was going to be that bad." She mumbled.

What happened last night? Had we just fallen asleep in each other's arms? I can't recall a thing now.

My mind was filled with contemplation; I didn't want to think about it too much. I admit, I did have a little too much last night, and even I had a slight hangover.

Giving Yuna a pill and some water, I said "This should do the trick."

"You know Tidus, it was sweet of you yesterday…"

"It was?" What was this about?

"Yeah it was. Thank you" I could see that she was blushing a little. An awkward silence fell upon us. It felt _weird._

"Behind that mask of being a player, you have a really sweet inner self." She said slowly, hesitating a little. "I like that other Tidus, the sweet caring one"

Did she just say she liked me? I listened intently but I didn't say a word. All I did was stare at her with my light blue eyes, glazing into those multicoloured ones. It was a moment that words couldn't describe, that even the very notion of saying something would destroy the complex structure of the situation. Metaphorically speaking of course.

I haven't seen Yuna since then, we had left Rikku's place with a kiss and a hug, but nevertheless it was cute. Rather PG and action less but nonetheless cute. I felt I was manipulated into someone I didn't want to become, yet I was willingly to become that person at all costs. This might sound contradictory, but perhaps that was what my mind was telling me. It was Monday morning now; I hadn't even talk to Yuna over the last two days. This main reason of course was that I was scared of talking to her father, Braska. He has something in him, a kind of 'power'. It was as if I had to be honest with him, as if he has this sense of aura that made everyone want to be honest and nicely presented. I didn't know. It was a school day, everything was as usual except for the fact that Yuna wanted to be with me. I was really surprised at the progress of Yuna and my relationship, perhaps a little to fast even for me. Nonetheless Yuna didn't seem to mind. Between periods we often met up even for a brief second or two to just see each other. I felt like I was going to explode, when I didn't see her. Yes of course we had to attend class. I couldn't absorb anything during class. History, English were all horrible as I listened to the teacher blabber on about something completely off topic. It wasn't much different to the other days, but something was different. I felt like I had somehow lit up, metaphorically speaking again. A warm internal feeling fulfilled with love was blazing within me. I had loved Yuna for probably four years now, and just a few days ago she expressed her love too.

"Hi lovely" I waved to Yuna during lunch where I was waiting for her classroom.

"Hey, handsome. So how are things?" I could hear murmurs behind us, perhaps people were not used to the way that I actually fall for a girl. I could tell, I wouldn't have believed it myself if it was me four years ago.

"It's horrible, without you of course" I said as I held up a small box containing some food I had bought from the school canteen. Although we had expressed our feelings, we weren't dating or anything so I didn't even dare kiss her or do anything out of the ordinary. The best way to describe it was that we were best friends. Now that Gippal has left me for Rikku, I was bored to hell. That sentence might make me sound gay, but I meant our friendship was abandoned. I needed a friend to whom I could talk to about anything, really.

"Wow, thanks." She said in appreciation.

"No problem, that's what friends are for right? How's your foot?"

"It's fine now." she replied as she twirled around to prove she was okay.

I was the type of guy who enjoys toying with other people's feelings and treats them as entertainment. I said, 'was'. But now, I think something is different inside me. Something that I couldn't quite put my finger on.

"Yuna, you know I feel happy when I'm with you. I don't know why I'm even telling you this, or why I feel happy but I just do. What happens when you are sad, Yuna?"

What?!? Was it me who was being so honest with her?

"When I'm sad, or unhappy, or even just bored, I like to sit in a quiet place. Enjoy the view. It makes me forget all the unhappy things that are happening." Yuna said, as we walked towards the cafeteria.

"Then I turn around, smile. And face my troubles." She continued, and she turned towards me and smiled.

"Are you mocking me that I am trouble? Although you are a girl… that doesn't exclude yourself from getting bashed by me"

"Are you really going to bash me up? You girl basher!" she said, wide eyed and open mouthed.

"No silly. I won't be violent if you don't call me trouble" I joked.

"Yo Tidus, playing with our little friend isn't good" Gippal gave me a light punch on the shoulder. I didn't know where he had learnt that move, but I felt like bashing him instead.

"Gippal, if you stop talking now, no one will think you are retarded" I retorted.

"That's not a nice thing to say to a friend you know!" Gippal complained and held Yuna in front of him as if she was a meat shield.

"I was kidding Gippal, how's things with Rikku? Sorry we left without saying goodbye." I tried to change the subject.

"No problem Tidus. Everyone could see that if it wasn't for that strong alcoholic drink, you guys would have made out." He said eyeing Yuna then moved his attention to me.

"Gippal, we are not like Rikku and you! I wouldn't make out that easily in public!" I said, in an annoyed tone.

"Tidus..." Gippal continued, pointing towards Yuna. "She doesn't seem that happy. She wants to get laid…"

"What?! I do not!" Yuna said, in a surprised tone, trying to defend herself.

"Everyone saw it. If it hadn't been Rikku and me, holding you two apart and letting you fall asleep, you guys would have made out no doubt." Gippal grinned as he saw Rikku walking this way and waved.

"How come I didn't know about this? That is definitely something Gippal decided to make up." I said to Yuna and walked towards Rikku.

"Cid's girl, isn't it true that on the night of your party, these guys were going to make out?" Gippal gave her a hug and gave her a deep kiss.

"Yunie! You would have lost your virginity to this guy!" Rikku cried as she tore free of the kiss and ran to Yuna and started holding her hands.

"What? This guy? I have a name you know! And how come I don't remember this?" I cried in an equally high tone, just to prove my point.

"You were drunk remember?" Gippal snorted.

"No… I wasn't"

"Anyways, it wasn't just you. You _two_ were all over each other. What's going on between you two?" Gippal announced.

Yuna began to blush deeply, as her face turned tomato red.

"Yunie, blame Tidus. Look what he's making you become. You should stay away from him." Rikku said, as she held Yuna away from my reach.

"Rikku, I seriously don't remember this event ever happening. If I didn't know, obviously I'm innocent…seriously." I stressed, as we sat down on the cafeteria table, waiting for the others.

"Natural instinct Tidus. Your desire to mate" Gippal again…

"Shut up Gippal!" I yelled as I stood up almost as instantly and held up my fists.

"Calm down you two" Yuna said, she hadn't spoken since we had met these two crazy people. "I don't seem to mind…" she looked down at the table.

"You what?!?" Rikku and Gippal both exclaimed simultaneously. It must be a couple thing. Maybe being with something long enough causes 'chemical reactions' or 'mind reactions' to occur. But they were definitely thinking alike today.

"Hold on guys, she said she likes me. Well…my other sweet half anyway."

Yuna looked up instantly, as if saying _'Why did you just blurt out my feelings?'_

Well, it was fun nonetheless. To see her reaction when I said that. Fun. What do we know about fun…? Sigh...

---

That night, my old man threw a spasm again. It was the wildest I've seen yet. I tried battling and tackling the wild beast with everything I've learnt, mostly from blitzball. But he simply knew more tricks and slicks than in the book. I had packed a punch in his stomach, to try and give him a warning, but what I received was a return punch right in my eyes. It was getting rather swollen now, and I was having trouble seeing him.

"Stop it! You're going to wreck everything!" I yelled as I dodged another vase flying my way.

"You little rascal! Come over here and I'll teach you who's your daddy!" He returned the insults.

"Just stop it! I'll call the police" I screamed, as I tried to land another punch on him but missed entirely.

"Stop it!" someone yelled. I was confused, who was that? A blue silk scarf? A sweep of bright light? Was it some kind of magic? What's going on?

When my eyes adjusted I saw my old man was tied together on the hands with a large silk scarf. Silk is that strong?

"Tidus, pack your things at once. You are not going to stay with this drunk." Who was this? Blue eyes, summoner's clothes? I ran through my memory to find match the face with a name.

"Braska?" I seemed to blurt out almost at once.

"Lord Braska" he corrected. Noticing the sleeping medicine on the coffee table (surprisingly that wasn't overturned) he grasped it and pushed a small pill down Jecht's mouth.

"Pack my things?" I questioned confused, as I watched his methodical procedure as if he's done it before.

"Yes, pack your things."

Something compelled me to do so; I didn't own much in the house. There were only two things that I treasured. I bolted towards my room and grabbed my blitzball and search the room for the other item. I tried to remember where Jecht had thrown it, but instantly I saw the scrunched up piece of paper and retrieved it.

Fifteen minutes later, Braska brought me to his house. I certainly felt weird as the trip was quiet and absurd. I need to know why, and how. Why was he doing this? How did he know where I lived? What's going on? My mind was bombarded with millions of questions, but whenever I tried to open my mouth to speak, nothing came out. Braska was a powerful figure; his 'aura' was intense, I felt compelled and refrained from saying anything, such power... I felt as if I was squashed under this aura, condensed into nothingness. Braska opened the door and a series of house servants greeted us.

Yuna popped her head out of the kitchen just to see me with a blitzball on my right hand, and a small piece of paper on the left.

"What's going on?" Yuna questioned.

"Yuna, come here and sit down. I have something to say" Braska said, almost in a commanding tone. He was calm and his pose stood firm, he didn't seem to reveal any of his internal feelings. He wasn't cold, he was just like any politician, careful and methodical, I guess.

"How do you know where I lived?" I finally blurted out, as the questioned began exploding out of my mouth.

"I needed to keep in touch with you." He simply said.

"I know this may come as a surprise, on how I boomed into your residential area and how I had asked you to come over. But I have my reasons." he continued.

"What reasons are they?" I asked, I was slowly beginning to calm down.

"Well, it all started when I told you, Jecht stole Elaine away from me?" he said.

"Yeah…" Where was this leading to?

"She came back to me after their marriage." He answered himself.

"She… what?" That just caused another wave of questions to bombard me, what IS going on?

"One night she came to my residence and started crying…I didn't know what was going on. She just burst out into tears. Only until this day, I discovered it was because of Jecht's drinking problems. That night, she arrived on the front porch of my house in Bevelle. She was thoroughly soaked in the rain. When I invited her into the house, she collapsed onto the couch, feeble and weak. Upon chatting with her and consoling, she slightly calmed down, and gathered enough strength to sit up straight. She returned to him and tried to tolerate Jecht. She hadn't mentioned a thing about Jecht that night."

"You feel sorry because you saw my old man try to attack me?" I asked

"No…actually Yes. I did feel sorry, but that wasn't the entire reason. Be quiet whilst I explain. Until a several years ago, I discovered that she had passed away. And so I decided to investigate further on the matter. She was young, and healthy all the time, the knowledge of her death shocked me greatly. It was until only recently that I discovered where you lived, Tidus. After further investigating, through various departments of officials, it led me to this conclusion." He took a breath, as I rubbed my sore eye, trying to take all this in at once. Yuna sat quietly on the other end of the sofa, but her eyes told me she was bewildered.

"That..." he paused again, "After that night she left me, she became pregnant…"

"What?!?" I blurted out, but decided to hold my mouth tight.

"She had left me a message before her death." Braska continued as he took out a piece of paper from a case tied around his neck, as he opened the case and gave it to me as I read out.

"_Sorry Braska of what happened between us. Jecht is a nice man, despite his drinking activities. My deepest regret, and part of your own doing has caused problematic issues, I hope that you take care of our child and protect him"_…

"Our child?!?!" I blurted out; I didn't know if it was the hundredth time this evening.

"Yes, and so from that time onwards I discovered that you are my son" Braska said, in a calm voice.

"Sir…" I began.

"Call me father, or follow Yuna and call me Daddy." Braska corrected.

"D-d-dad…" I struggled to find the syllables.

"Yes son? I promise that from this day forth, I'll protect you." He leaned forward and gave me a hug. Although it felt weird, it was the first time in my life I felt that I had a father, a real loving father.

---

"Yuna" I called, a few hours later after the endeavour with Braska. Braska went out for some political meeting; he said he wouldn't be back until early next morning. Yuna's back was facing me, and her hair flowed down her neck releasing a slight fragrance.

"Yuna…I didn't know this would happen…" I said. She stayed quiet.

"You know I love you…" I continued as I approach her and then I placed my hand onto her shoulders.

"You can't love me" she cried out, "You're my brother now" she wept. Her face was shrouded within the darkness of the hall, she was slightly inclined against the wall.

"Yuna, remember what you said this morning? About what you do when you are in trouble?" I said, as I stroked her hair in compassion "Turn around and smile"

Her body shook, tears rolled down her face and onto the floor. A small puddle of what once used to be Yuna's tear, remain there...

"Turn around Yuna, and give me a smile" I said softly, trying to make her stop crying.

She slowly turned around, slowly, and slowly. Degree by degree until I finally saw her face. It was a tear filled one.

**Well, that was kinda sad wasn't it? I was going to make this complication happen later in the story, but I couldn't hold it back anymore. Something was compelling me to put this in ASAP, so there you have it. Read and Review :) I'll find a few days to relax now...I think this story is getting interesting by the moment! **

**PS. I had to leave a slight cliffhanger at the end :)**


	9. Aftermath

Okay, now here it is. This story is taking sooooooooooo long! OMG! ...!!!!...fine.. ignore me! -.-!!!

(Edited 28th August)

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**Chapter 9: Aftermath**

She didn't give me a smile; instead it was a painful cry. I had probably never seen her this way ever before, perhaps it was because she was always so carefree and happy. I knew, for some strange reason, that there was another side of her underneath that outside mask of hers that she was putting on, the one that everyone sees.

"Yuna…I didn't know it would turn out like this." I started as I tried my best to comfort her, that didn't sound like consoling did it? I could tell she needed comforting, but she wasn't the only one. I felt like my heart had broken shatter the moment I saw her crying, those tear fill eyes of hers, the puffy cheeks. I didn't want it to end like this, I didn't want to.

She held me tight and softly cried in my arms. It seems as though a solid strong wall had built up between us, an indestructible one.

"Yuna, we can still be good friends…" I said optimistically, "We can meet each other everyday. Eat together, learn together and become best friends" I announced as cheerfully as I could, but it was all an exterior act.

"We could…become good friends?" she sobbed out, and looked up. Tears rolled down her face like raindrops, her eyes didn't have that sparkling shine anymore. They were dull and sombre.

"I can teach you how to Blitz!" I held up my hand pretending to do a blitzball move "You have a sphere pool at the back of your house don't you? I saw it the other day. We'll have heaps of fun!"

She opened her eyes and looked up to me, a sparkle of light from within.

"And you can teach me how to draw! You're a wonderful artist you know! I…I still have your drawing" I said, as I held up the scrunched up piece of paper and showed her the drawing.

"You…still have it?" her voice starting to sound much brighter at the sight of that.

"Sure. But promise me Yuna, be happy. Remember what you said? Turn around and smile whenever you're unhappy. Face your fears, troubles right?"

"You promise me that we will be together. We can do anything in the world…right? " she said, without answering my question.

"Anything" I assured her.

"But…we can't love each other…"

And that was the sad truth. Back to square one. We could be the best of friends, but we could never, never, ever love each other dearly. Never.

---

The next day, the morning was dull and cloudy just like what I felt.

"Hey son, how was the night?" Braska greeted me and mention a seat at the dining table.

"Fine, just shocked about the news. I mean it comes at a shock for all of us right?" I slipped into the cold wooden seat to see Yuna sitting on the opposite of me and eating silently.

"Yuna, where's your manners. Why don't you greet your older brother?"

"Morning Tidus" Yuna muttered as she continued eating.

"Morning Yuna"

A few servants brought in a series of dishes, some containing fish and seafood, and other containing various types of meat.

"What is this?" I asked, pointing to a dish right under my nose.

"That, my son, is a Blue Fin Tuna. It's very delicious, not to mention nutritious too"

Of course I knew what this is; I've heard extremely wealthy people like Nooj talk about it. I daresay this would cost a few hundred Gils at the very least. I didn't know what to expect, from a father who was almost always a drunk to a father who has his leads in politics…From poor to extremely rich. I mean, Braska has everything. Servants, pools, and probably the house could hold a few hundred people at a time. It was essentially a mansion, without the extravagant decorations. Well, without that _much_ decoration, except for some paintings and such.

"Well, I'll leave you brother and sister to it. The chauffeur will take you to school" he wiped his mouth with a napkin and left.

"We have a chauffeur?" I asked after he left.

"Is it so weird?"

"Yeah…." I said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"How do you get to school then?"

That question caused a blank response from me; Yuna knew nothing about the outside world.

"Most people get to school by bus and train. I drive to school." I explained briefly as I continue eyeing the food, it might look good but might not take as great.

"Oh" she said as she took a piece of toast and handed it to me.

"Thanks. Yuna, for someone who is this rich, don't you think you can 'fly' to school on a plane or something?"

"Is there a need? Rikku has a plane though, maybe I can use it someday…" she joked, finally she was starting to get more optimistic about things.

"Tidus, there's something that I need to tell you." Her expression turned suddenly solemn.

"What?" I stopped eating and felt confused at the sudden change of atmosphere within this conversation.

"Now that you are part of my family there's something you need to know."

"Yeah?"

"Remember that night I was attacked?"

"You talking about that time when I found you all scratched and bruised?"

"Yes, that wasn't pure coincidence you found me in that state."

"Huh? What are you talking about?" I felt confused as ever, and believe me, these couple of days I feel _VERY_ confused.

"My father has enemies. Political ones."

"So you mean they are trying to harass you, or trying to blackmail father?" It felt weird calling Braska father, but nonetheless I had to accept the truth. I was gradually getting the idea; some people call me a fast learner.

"Well, my father has a few problems with the other maesters. My father stands for the unification of all the races, so that Spira can live in peace. Have you noticed my eyes?"

"Yeah sure, first time I saw you. They're beautiful" I said, and I could see she flushed a little, but soon turned serious again.

"My mother was an Al-bhed. And that's why my mother and father were married. They wanted Spira to become united so that there is no discrimination between different cultures and different races."

"That means, is Rikku an Al-bhed?"

"Yeah, she's my mother's brother's daughter. So my uncle's daughter. My mother being an Al-bhed naturally means my uncle is one and thus she is one too."

"Uh-oh….ok…does that mean she's my cousin as well?"

"Not sure…probably…" Yuna said, not very convincingly.

"Anyway that's not the point of this discussion." She continued, again turning solemn. "My father has some trouble persuading the Guado to join this unification. Their maester, Maester Jyscal Guado has other intentions."

"So, they don't want to join this unification?"

"Actually, on the contrary they do. They want it more than my father does. But there's a trick to it. They want a Grand Maester, who leads everyone in Spira."

"Is that such a bad thing? I mean, I'm not into politics that much. I'm mostly hold a blind eye to all this."

"Apparently, there is much pressure between us to the extent that they are trying to harass me into making my father give into pressure. Now that you are my brother…"she paused and took a deep breath "you need to be careful too."

I was absorbing this quite fast actually, considering how much I had to take in these few days. I recall the mysterious man who was stalking me that night…nah there's no need to worry Yuna about these things.

---

"Tidus! You came to school in Yuna's car?!?!?" Gippal announced loudly as soon as he saw Yuna and I step out of the Limousine.

"Yunie! Oh my god! Did you get married to Tidus already?" Rikku slipped between Gippal and me, and dived for Yuna.

"Guys, chill for a bit okay?" I called out, not trying to make a fuss out of this. But at this rate, the whole of the school is going to know about this. Hold on…the whole of the school is here already!

"What's going on?" Gippal exclaimed as he grabbed me and 'took me for a stroll'.

"Yuna, we'll see you later okay?" I shouted back. "Rikku too."

"Later!" They shouted to Gippal and me.

I could hear their 'loud' conversation, and I could also manage to hear the name "Tidus" and "Gippal and I" mentioned in the talk. I turned to Gippal and tried to answer his question.

"Gip, it's complicated. Really complicated. Emphasis on _complicated_" I started, thinking on how the hell am I going to explain this to Gippal.

"Spill it out dude."

"Well, last night…"

"Woh dude, let me guess, you got married?"

"Shut up and listen if you want to know!" I shouted back. We were used to this teasing and screaming exchange. It's how we grew up and known each other. It might seem a little hostile, but we know in our hearts we are still friends to the end.

"Ok, ok. Spill it."

"As I said, last night Yuna's father came over and invited me over to her house." I began, taking a breath and deciding on how to explain it all.

"He said that he believed I was his son."

"What?" he cried out, "You're kidding right?"

"No, I'm not. Something about my mother being unfaithful to my old man, and he blabbered on about how he knew."

"So you're now the son of a rich powerful political figure? High Summoner Braska?"

"Yeah, I guess." I shook my head, and I pushed the code on my locker as it clicked open.

"So what about you and Yuna?" he questioned as he also opened his locker, since it was only a few rows from mine.

"Nothing I guess." I sighed as I check my timetable to see what periods I had, and flipped through the books of several subjects.

"Nothing? You practically were all over one and another at the party."

"I still don't know what happened. You haven't explained yet. I wasn't too sober that night. What did happen?" I stopped as I looked at him straight in the face.

"Do you remember we were playing that game?"

"That one with tied feet?"

"Yeah. Well after that, remember how you guys were forced to drink that _drink?_"

"I couldn't have forgotten how bad it tasted." I felt revolting even at the thought of it.

"Yuna drank about half the jug but couldn't finish it entirely. So, being the man you are, you finished it for her" he said as he grabbed a few books and exchanged it with some in his bag.

"What's the fuss about then?"

"Yuna, probably very soon after, started to puke. I haven't seen a person feeling so bad before."

"Well, duh! She hasn't drunk any alcohol before. Now suddenly a few people are making her drink a jug of that strong spirits."

"Ah, no wonder that happened."

"Get to the point Gippal" I said, glancing at my watch to see that it wasn't very long till school begins.

"What Nooj didn't tell you was that there was another ingredient in that alcohol. There was some SpiraMax in it."

"SpiraMax? What the hell is that?"

"You know those medicines that make you high? Well, it has no side effects but it makes you want to make out with the opposite gender."

"You're kidding right?!" I yelled out as I grabbed Gippal and pushed him against the lockers.

"Chill, Tidus. Calm down." Gippal said coolly.

"Tell me what happened" I insisted as I forced him after into the lockers.

"You guys made out obviously" He rolled his eyes and laughed loudly.

"We… what? Remember what I told you not 10 minutes earlier?" I cried out as I got angrier.

"Oh yeah… that. Well you didn't know then. Look to tell you honestly, we didn't know what happened. When Rikku and I discovered you on the couch, you guys weren't wearing very much." He joked, as he pulled free of my grasp and slung his bag around his back.

"So you didn't see what happened? So it might have no happened?"

"If seeing you make out is what your worried about, then don't worry I didn't see. Neither did any of the others. About that other question…Nooj said that it's a powerful drug. So it must have taken effect." Gippal rolled his eyes, still jokingly, as if this was a humorous situation. He ran off to class, as I watched stubbornly at his back moving away into the long corridor.

* * *

**I've noticed through your reviews on how you all got confused about what happened in the party. So I decided to clarify it in the story. Hopefully this makes more sense now. I didn't want it to turn out this way...Thanks :) Love you and your reviews. I like to improve on my mistakes **

**Note to Self : I had intially planned to end the Party there and there. But now I decided that I could make more drama out of it by doing it this way. **


	10. Two Years Ago

**I would have never dreamed that I got this far...lol. This is my first fan fic ever :P I had started this to relax, but rather this is making me stress more. But I'm enjoying this 'stress' nonetheless lol. Okay, two updates in two days. Yay, go me!**

**(Edited 25th July 2007) - I've realised this chapter doesn't have time lapses! Sorry! I knew it would have been hell without those breaks. It seems some fonts don't appear on html :S **

**(Edited 28th August 2007) - A few stuff here and there**

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**Chapter 10: Two Year Ago**

_Flashback_

_---_

It's the first day of school, after a marvellous break over the Christmas holidays. I thought I was a big boy now because I was supposedly meant to be one year older due to the New Year. I stared at my first period of the day and started to groan. It was Visual Arts. I didn't know why the school made is compulsory to do Art; I mean we are grown up already, even though we are still considered the Junior School.

"Good Morning Tidus, what's your first period?" Gippal flipped opens his wallet to reveal his new timetable and peered over my shoulder to see mine.

"It's Visual Arts. I was hoping it was PE or something." I moaned in despair on the first day of school.

"What do you have Gippal?" I asked intrinsically.

"Music." His tone rather similar to mine, he didn't like it either.

"Why does the school have to offer such random courses? And it's compulsory" I cried out, making an emphasis on compulsory.

"Hey chill, next year we can make our own subject choices. I guess the school still thinks we are infants." He said simply.

"Alright, catch you later Gippal" I called back, as I picked up my huge mumbo jumbo bag, which to some extent resembled a bomb, and ran towards the Art's department.

---

"Hello there Tidus" Ms Belgemine called out and greeted me.

"Hi Miss" I said politely, as I stepped into the door. I had been enormously shy with this teacher but nonetheless I looked up from the floor. Without knowing it, my eyes locked with up someone else's for a fraction of a second. Who was she? I've swear I've known this girl, seen her run about a few times now, but I didn't know who she was. She wasn't the type of girl that would attract you attention if she walked passed you on the street, perhaps that why I didn't know her name.

----

"How was Art?" Gippal smirked as he ran up to me in one of the long corridors in the school.

"Oh boring as usual. What about Music class?" I said.

"It was awesome!" he cried out and smiled.

"Oh and why is that?" I said, trying to sound interested.

"Remember how primary school friend? The one we used to tease around because she's scared of lightning?" he asked.

"Your family friend? What's-her-name?" I said as I scratched my head.

"Rikku. She's awesome!"

"Don't fall for her Gippal. I still want a friend around" I murmured, half jokingly but the other half dead serious.

---

"Today, we are going to have a party! It's my birthday!" Ms Belgemine called out as everyone celebrated.

"Happy Birthday Ms Belgemine!" the class called out in unison.

"And here's lollies and cake for everyone!" She smiled as she pulled a huge bag from behind her and placed several different lollies on the desk. Absent-mindedly, I grabbed a lollipop from one of the bags and tossed it around in the air, thinking about Blitzball practice.

"I want a Strawberry Lollipop!" a girl from behind me called out. I turned around and saw her. It was a brunette, with short cut hair.

"Sorry Yuna, there's none left." Ms Belgemine said, "But here's some nice cake. You can have a big piece!"

She groaned in disappointment as she eye one of her friends who was holding a strawberry one.

"Here, I have one" I held out the lollipop and offered it her.

"Can I really?" her eyes resembling puppy eyes.

"Sure, take it. I don't need it."

"Thank you! You're my best friend" she shouted excited as she grabbed the lolly.

"No worries." I knew she was joking, but it was fun to see how much she wanted a mere lolly.

After the bell rang for signalling the end of school, everyone ran out.

"Wait…" Ms Belgemine called out, but she was too late. "I needed…someone to clean this up…"

"I'll clean it up Miss." Yuna said, as she knelt on the floor and started picking up crumbs of cake on the carpet.

"Since I'm here…I'll help too" I offered as I also knelt and scourged the floor for food bits.

"Thanks guys, I couldn't have done it without you two. My friend just called to get me to a dinner party…" she said.

"Don't worry, Miss. We can handle it." Yuna said.

"Thanks again."

"Your name is Yuna?" I asked, as I continued picking up crumbs.

"Yes, why?"

"Yuuuuuuuuuu-naaaaaaaa" I said, testing the syllables out.

"Yes?"

"Oh nothing just sounds kind of cute. That's all."

"Well, yeah…I guess. My friends call me You-Nah" she joked.

---

"It's time for maths class." The teacher called, I had no idea who he was, but if its maths… well…I guess it is the better of the subjects.

"Hey Tidus, guess what! Rikku's in our class" Gippal said, for the fiftieth time this year.

"Yes I know that!" I said, as I eyed Yuna across the room. We were sitting at the back row, so we could see everything in the room. She was chatting with Rikku about something.

"Who's that girl talking to my girl?" Gippal whispered in my ear.

"Yuna" I said quickly, perhaps a little too fast as he turned to me and faced me directly.

"You know her?" he asked, trying to make his voice as low as possible.

"She's in my Art class."

"What's their relationship then?" Gippal asked again.

"Do you expect me to know?" I answered with a rhetorical question.

I listened to the teacher talking about algebraic functions and trigonometric functions for a while. I was slowly getting all this down on paper when Gippal tapped me again.

"She's looking at me" It must have been Rikku; Gippal's gone head over heels lately over this girl. I looked up and was shocked to see in fact it was Yuna who was staring at Gippal and whispering something to Rikku. I'm not sure what I felt, is this jealously?

The bell rang a few minutes later, as the class slowly began disassembling.

"Wassup girls?" Gippal said coolly.

"Hey Gippal" Rikku said simply. She was a short blonde girl who had green eyes and perhaps a little high on sugar as she was bouncing on her toes. She saw Gippal eyeing the girl next to her and smiled briefly.

"She's my cousin, Yuna."

"Cousin?" Gippal and I both exclaimed in surprise.

"Hi, nice to meet you" Yuna said softly.

"So…Yuu…naaa" Gippal started, as he leaned towards her. "Want to come to watch the movies tonight?" I said nothing, but I could tell that I was getting slightly jealous that Gippal was trying to take two girls at the same time, and simultaneously too. He's trying to take a ride on two boats…What surprised me was that I saw an almost reflection of my expression on Rikku's face.

"No thank you!" she turned around and walked away.

"Yunie, wait for me!" Rikku ran after her.

I had stayed quiet for the entire length of this conversation, but decided I needed to say something.

"Gippal, don't you think asking a girl on a date when there's another girl in front of her is a little overboard?"

"Is it? But Rikku is coming along too. It was her that wanted Yuna to come along. You know… girls…they are too scared to come alone."

---

"Congratulations! Tidus! You made it to the school team!" Gippal exclaimed.

"It's only the juniors though." I simply replied. "Why don't you try out too?"

"You think I'll make it?"

"Sure, have a try"

---

"I made it!" Gippal shrieked at the top of his lungs, and hugged me tightly.

"Stop being gay, guys" Baralai said, as he came walking towards us.

"Long time no see, Baralai. When was it again?" Gippal greeted Baralai.

"We were neighbours when we were…six? Was it?" Baralai scratched his head, trying to remember.

"Sure did!" I said excitedly, "What brings you here? I remember when we were young, we had heaps of fun!"

"Family moved here a few days ago. Since this is the only school which is barely decent, I decided to come here. Yes, Tidus, we did have lots of fun. Sure hope we have fun at this school" he laughed as he stepped aside to reveal someone else.

"Hi" Paine said.

---

"Remember the Crimson Squad?" Baralai asked me as we walked along the corridors, between one of the periods.

"The one that I refused to join?" I said.

"Yeah, the one with Gippal, Paine and I. There was a four member…"

"What are you suggesting Baralai?" I could sense that he had something to say.

"You remember Nooj right? The guy who was a few years older than us?"

"Yeah I did, he's here too." I said.

"He wants to make a new squad this time. A bigger and better one." He said, as he hesitated for a little bit.

"You are hinting something"

"We're asking you to join."

Something told me to join, something did…I didn't want to join…perhaps it sounded too weird…squad…what the hell was that?

"Okay…" I replied finally, after much thought.

---

"She agreed to go out to dinner with me!" Gippal cried out loudly. He was getting this habit from somewhere…

"Rikku?" I asked. I was hoping it was Rikku, perhaps for a few reasons. But I was also hoping it wasn't Rikku. I was hoping it wasn't Rikku because that would mean Gippal would hang out with me more. But I was hoping it was Rikku, because…well…simply because I didn't want him to date any other girl…namely…_her._

_----_

Art class again…sigh. I hate to admit it, but over the past few months, I was slowly enjoying art class. This is mostly because Ms Belgemine was teaching us how to draw Blitzball. I was extremely surprised that Blitzballs were extremely hard to sketch. They had little bumps which were evenly disturbed around the surface area of the spherical shape. In addition to that, they had to colour coded from Blue to White. I have this natural disability…you could call it… that I can't imagine three dimensional shapes. It was _hard_! As I said, drawing this Blitzball was the second best lesson we've had in Art Class. Second to that Party of course.

"Alright, little children" Ms Belgemine called out nicely, almost jokingly. "It's time to pack up."

Grabbing my drawing tools, which mainly comprised of oil crayons and carbon charcoal sticks but it had some paint brushes too, I took off my apron. Yes, we were forced to wear apron, not matter how silly it looked, the teacher insisted that we wear them. I fought hard on dismissing the idea that we had to wear aprons, it looked gay! I was a man nonetheless. And making me wear an apron was not going to happen. But after weeks and perhaps months of fighting, I lost the battle. I feel shame…I won't mention aprons anymore. I walked towards the hanger, where we hung the 'clothing'. Stretching my arm and hand a little I reach up to hang it on the highest hook. A girl blocked my way, and she was taking up all the time in the world trying to hang it on a low hook. She edged backwards, and she was dangerously close to my body. Not just my body, but my lower area…I felt uncomfortable, but continued to push forward and get close to the hanger so that I could pack up and leave. Then it happened. She moved backwards, and pushed me off balance. Her butt was disturbing close to my groin…it felt weird. I fell, on my own butt, and she after losing her balance also, fell on top of me in a sitting position.

"Sorry" she called out and realised that she was sitting on my stomach; she blushed a lot and quickly got up.

"Err…let's just hope that doesn't happen anymore" I said, as I scratched my hair, but stood up.

She ran out the door before I got to see who it was that harassed me. I needed to know, so I could have my revenge. I raced out the door, but stopped at the door because she looked back. Blue and green eyes.

_End of Flashback_

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**I asked myself why I put in this chapter... the answer...I dont know. I felt it was fun to add this chapter into the story, simply because it was fun. Fun...yes.. that's what Life revovles around... fun :P**

**I thought this chapter could add some understanding to the story. But I'm not sure it was the best way I could have put it. It's a bit confusing in some parts because it's a little jumpy. It's just a few segements of short stories of Tidus's past. Okay, till next time :)**


	11. Distractions

**Lol I had this written, typed up, and uploaded yesterday... but I forgot to add the document into my story... I thought I had uploaded it.. :( my bad... hehe sorry for delay.. here it is**

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**Chapter 11: Distractions**

I walked back to the lockers, opened the door to peer around and check my books. I hadn't realised that I was stoned in thought from that flashback. It did back some old memories but they are the least of my worries now. I check my table…History…

"You're early Tidus" Mr Maechen looked up from his lecture as I knocked on the door.

"Sorry Sir" I muttered and walked in.

"I was expecting your arrival in another 20minutes you see? Ah yes…Tidus, since I'm sure you've been spending your glorious time studying Spiran History, could you tell me more about it? I was just telling all the other members of class, who happen to be on time mind you, about high summoners. Could you tell me more about high summoners please Tidus?" Mr Maechen asked slyly.

"High Summoners are people who have acquired the final aeon. Summoners journey around Spira, to various temples to pray to the Fayth. They somehow get an aeon; I think it was from will to fight Sin. Or something. After journeying to acquire all the aeons around Spira: Besaid, Kilika, Djose, Macalania and Bevelle, they can come to Zanarkand to acquire the final summoning. There are also rumours that there are three more aeons, namely at Baaj, Cavern of the Stolen Fayth and Remiem Temple. After the Summoner acquires these aeons, which are in fact representations of the Fayth in spirit form, they can then defeat Sin and bring the Calm to the whole of Spira. We, people of Spira give Summoners who have defeated Sin, the high honour of being called High Summoners. They are therefore integrated into the Political world in which they become an equal or higher position than Maesters." I took a deep breath and sat down on my seat. Did all that just come out of me?

After I sat down, I realised that everyone was clapping and cheering. They weren't interested in this boring history of course; they wanted to teach old Maechen a lesson.

"Thank you Tidus for that vivid description of High Summoners. Now everyone turn to Page 57 and read the article there." He commanded as the cheering stopped and reverted to groaning.

History wasn't a very interesting subject, but I had to study it nonetheless. Maechen was in fact helping me, because it's all revision…

"Tidus, how did you do that?" Baralai whispered, as we turned to the text book.

"Oh, I happen to be reading it on the way to school." I grinned and fiddled with my pen.

"I thought so. You aren't the type of person to study all that and actually remember it." He replied as he moved his concentration to the text, which had a vivid description of high summoners and their role in society.

"Well, things change" I put up a weak smile as I thought about Yuna and her sudden relationship with me from 'friend' to sister. Does Baralai know about this? Probably not yet.

"I saw you and Yuna come to school today" he commented softly, making sure Maechen and his keen ears doesn't hear our conversation.

"Yeah, what about it?" I asked casually, not wanting to repeat everything I just told Gippal not thirty minutes ago and tell Baralai.

"Don't worry Tidus. I overheard Rikku and Yuna's conversation." He smiled as he pretended to read the text book.

"So you know."

"Yeah, I feel sorry for you man"

"I don't need you to feel sorry for me Baralai, I'm fine. Really, I am." I said convincingly.

"Tidus, Baralai come to me after class. You young people these days, talking non sense during my class time. Am I that boring?" Maechen shouted out from the front of the class room, it was loud since we were at the back- as always- and he was getting old…

I was tempted to say, the obvious answer. _YES!_ But Baralai seemed to pre-empt my motives and quickly said "No sir. I was discussing with my fellow student Tidus about how he knew so much about high summoners. It seems he's been catching up on his homework and studying, even on the way to school."

_Oh shut up Baralai. You're making me look like a nerd! The only reason I was studying this was because Yuna made me! She said something about knowing my enemies and knowing a little more history/political stuff. Darn it, now you just make me look like a total fool. _

"Ah- I suppose reading the text book is slightly boring. I'll tell you a story. One thousand years ago, a huge war raged between the cities of Bevelle and Zanarkand. The war used high technologically advanced weapons called 'machina'. Yu Yevon, leader of Zanarkand, fears that Bevelle's machina were far superior to that of his, sacrificed the lives of the people of Zanarkand, turning them into the Fayth. He merges the life energies of the thousands of people of Zanarkand- also known as pyreflies- and builds an invincible armour called Sin. By doing so, he decimates Bevelle's army but also destroys Zanarkand. Yu Yevon's daughter Lady Yunalesca…" and with that the bell rang.

"Ah, we shall leave this to next time, if I remember of course." He grabbed his coffee mug that was on his table and sipped it slowly; well extremely slowly.

Seeing the chance to flee, Baralai seized my arm and pulled out of the door.

"Nice reactions Baralai, I'm kind of slow headed today." I commented as we ran halfway down the corridor.

"You know, Gippal's been busy lately. With Rikku and other stuff. I was thinking if you would hang out with me more often." I offered, as we strolled out onto the grass.

"Sure, how about after school at the old pub. Shiva's Tavern. Just like the old days huh?" he accepted.

"Oh Yevon! I totally forgot that Blitzball trials are today!I'll go there after I make the team…darn Wakka has to 'test' me and not just let me into the team…" I cursed, not realising I was actually talking aloud.

"You'll be finished at about 5? Okay, I'll ask Nooj to come over too. If he's not too busy with Le Blanc of course." Baralai said, as he farewelled me and headed for his next class.

"Tidus! Concentrate! What's with you?" Wakka yelled at the trials for Blitzball, that afternoon after school finished.

I dived into the sphere pool again, and swam full speed at Letty, who happened to have the ball. His speed wasn't as fast as mine, so I easily caught up.

_I was dating your mother_

I blocked Letty's path, and proceeded to tackle him head on.

_Your mother left a message before she died_

Letty held the ball tight and closed his eyes as I swam straight into him.

_You are mine son_

Bam! I hit him, knocking him backwards as I clasped around his body, to steal the ball off him whilst he flinched.

_Yuna is your sister_

I reached out my hands and groped for the ball, stretching my back for more distance and straining my muscles to overpower him…

"You orright?" Wakka leaned forward and pull me up.

I climb up, and hit my head lightly with my hand. My head hurts, much more than getting a hangover.

"You got disorientated, you almost drown ya know?" Wakka explained, as I felt weak and feeble on my legs.

"I feel fine Wakka. Let me go on again, I'll show them whose boss" I grinded my teeth together, as I felt I was making a fool out of myself for making a stupid mistake like that.

"Tidus, come here and lets have a walk, ya?" Wakka said in a commanding tone, as he grabbed me by the neck and head locked me out of the Blitzball stadium.

"Watch it Wakka, my heads going to get ripped off at this rate" I struggled free from his intense grip, and ran a few steps forward before turning back towards him and facing him.

"Tidus, I can tell something's wrong with you. You're not concentrating well today ya?"

"Wakka, I don't want to talk about it now"

"Okay, I'll leave you to your own business but I have to tell you there are only six members on that team. I can't let you go on the team as a striker due to your performance just then ya? What will people say about me? Wakka, you are a biased coach ya?"

"What are you getting at?" I asked

"What I'm saying is, I can't let you be Zanarkand's star player anymore. If you really want to be on the team, you will have to be the keeper."

"What?! Keeper? What about Keepa then? What's he going to do?" I yelled out in surprise.

"Keepa will be striker"

I scoffed at the silly and somewhat ironic nature of that statement. Keepa isn't keeper but a striker?

"Yo Tidus, you look awful. What happened?" Baralai signalled me when I stepped into Shiva's Tavern.

"I don't want to talk about it now" I repeated myself, just like what I said to Wakka.

"Waiter, bar beer thanks" Baralai pulled a seat on the table, as I noticed Nooj and Le Blanc were also sitting here.

"Tidey Widey, I noticed you're late. Come here and have a beer with cute Noojie Woojie will you?"

"Errr…that's a very disturbing way to say it." As I sat down on the seat and observed them. Although Nooj was one of my friends, I didn't have to like his girlfriend…right…? I mean, his 'type' was way off the usual league, even for me.

"Tidey, Noojie Woojie wants to go have a dance together. We'll catch you later" they waved and mentioned towards the dance floor, where flashing lights and loud music were playing. The last time I was here, which was when I met Paine, it was before 5 so there was no party. Now it's all changed, the atmosphere is entirely different.

"What do you want to say Tidus?"

"How did you know that I was going to say something? Baralai, you are too smart for your own good. Perhaps someday it will cause you more harm than good."

"You didn't look too well today. In fact you look far worse than I met you this morning." He said, as a waiter placed a bottle of beer on the table and subsequently poured it into my glass.

"I don't want to talk about it" I tried to look away, only to see Le Blanc holding Nooj in an extremely seductive way which disgusted me. Maybe looking away wasn't such a good idea.

"Sometimes when I get annoyed, angry or even distress on the things that happen around me" he said, at the same time pouring more beer into his glass. "I tell Paine everything that's in my heart. She might be quiet and not talkative, but she's a good listener. She won't spill my secrets away. Also I felt much better after telling her what's bothering me. I don't know the reason, it just felt my worries were halved." He said, and he sipped his wine slowly. Rich and famous drink wine, whilst the less fortunate take beer. At least to me it seems that way, even though my father is rich….and famous…

"Wakka almost kicked me out of the team." I said quickly and gulped down the beer as if it was water.

"What happened?" he said caringly.

"I fooled myself, and I got distracted." I said, trying to make up an excuse to cover it all up. I didn't want to tell them the real reason.

"This isn't you Tidus. You aren't playing your type of game."

"I know, I know" I announced in annoyance.

"Tidus, if this makes you feel better, all of us are willing to help you out when you are at your lowest. If you need any help at all, I'm sure one of us is able to help."

"Thanks, but I'm fine. I don't need any help. Nice of you to offer that though." I said, as I soberly drank the liquid.

"Look Tidus, I know that all this is so sudden on you. And that everything that you've known in your entire life has dramatically changed. Everything and that includes your family, and your beloved Blitzball. But you've got to know things will eventually change. There's always clear fresh air after a terrible storm. It will end."

"Thank you for the speech Baralai. I appreciate your help anyway. But I'm fine. Seriously."

I saw a break between the dances and walked up to the dancing floor swiftly.

"Nooj, could I have a moment?" I squeezed through a few dancers and pulled myself towards the couple dancing.

"Sure, let's have walk. I feel the air in here isn't terrific, despite my sweetheart accompanying me." Nooj commented as he kissed his girlfriend, saying he'll be back before she realises it.

The air outside was cool and damp; there were no stars in the sky but only a few dark clouds looming ahead. It was quiet out here at least, I thought to myself.

"So, what is up?" he said, as he flapped his t-shirt feeling the cool breeze.

"That night at the party," I started, as I leaned upon a small fence overlooking the dark sea. "After that game…what happened?"

"I gave you my special formula, and you snoozed off later on." He turned towards the sea too, and looked at its vastness and the sheer power of the waves knocking onto the cliffs below us.

"Gippal said it was a drug, something that made the user go high."

"Well, not exactly. You just feel more loved, and your will to love is stronger. Your kisses more passionate." He stated.

"So what happened?"

"How shall I know what happened? Shouldn't you ask yourself?" he sneered.

"I can't remember a thing." I answered honestly. That night was all blurry and fuzzy within my memory banks.

"Well, I've only seen one result after a couple consumes it, which is they make love to each other."

"Nooj that was a mean joke to play on Yuna and me" I flamed out, my eyes glaring intently on his.

"Tidus, I was _helping_ you out. Everyone knew you were trying to chase that girl, and everyone knows you will never give up on a girl until you caught her. And…that you split up with them not long after."

"That was not helping me. I wasn't trying to chase Yuna, she was a friend."

"That's weird Tidus," Nooj turned towards me "Tidus has a friend which happens to be a girl but not a girlfriend."

"Look Nooj, I know you graduated a few years ago but still join our group lunches and all, but you didn't go to school today. I don't blame you. But things have changed. Both the relationship between Yuna and me, and myself." I paused and tried to calm myself down by looking at the sea. I was pretty angry at Nooj's actions, but his intentions weren't 'that bad'.

"Yuna's my sister."

"Sister?" he repeated, his voice raising it slightly high at the end.

"Yes, Braska said I was his long lost son. Something like that, I don't care, I don't remember. Whatever. You were too rash on Saturday Nooj." I felt like I wanted to scold him further, but neither of us knew about my identity before it was too late. I didn't know who to blame.

"So, please tell me what happened that night. Could there be any chance there wasn't incest…" my voice trailed on, as I felt a knot tie within my throat.

"I'm sorry Tidus" he apologised, "my medicine is extremely effective. It doesn't have any symptoms, but it does achieve its purpose."

"Okay, it's alright. We didn't know on Saturday. Just keep it quiet" I said, as we walked back upon the footpath.

"Tell Baralai I'm going home. I'll walk. I need some quiet time." I said, as I trailed away from Nooj, and started to head home. Nooj watched me walk further and further away from him, and finally turned and walked back him.

-

"Who are you?" I demanded, as a shadow crawled out from behind one of the lamp posts. It was barely 5 minutes departing from Shiva's tavern, and I probably met up with some gangsters. Within the ambient light, I saw four or five figures lurking in the gloom.

"Tidus, I believe we've met before……" his raspy voice cracked at every syllable which eradicated from his lungs.

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**Thank you for the reviews :) The support really propelled this story forward... lol... I didn't expect this story to get as far as Chapter 5... afterall...it was just a story which I was gonna spend my spare time to write...It's been fun writing it up, first time I've realised stories are so fun to read and more fun to write up! ...and it's my first fan fic...so...yeah...**

**Fun...Life revolves around fun...**

**Note : Ummm don't ask me whats gonna happen...I have no idea... -.-!!! **


	12. Uncontrolled

**And so...after spending some time reading over what I've written in the past chapters I started continuing on with the story. It's taking quite a long time gather my thoughts up, as I initially have no idea where this story is going. **

**For all of you readers out there - ) Don't ask me what's going on...I know I am the author and I'm supposed to know what is going on next...but I simply am writing and thinking as I write. There's one simple rule I follow, perhaps this may help...or not...that is...**

**- For the first half of your story, dig yourself into deeeeeeeeep hole. For the rest of the story, try to dig yourself out of that hole. :D lol**

**Note to all readers: If I have a typo...grammar error, or simply something didn't make sense, please tell me. I am new to this afterall...but it's fun! Also, if anyone thinks I should change the ratings for this story...because of inappropiate themes..etc...please comment...I'm having a dilema on whether I should change it. I could start swearing at least... XD**

**And for all those who are wondering if this story is going to be a Tidus Yuna fic... lets just say... keep wondering... :D lol... **

**Hint: I dislike Yuna with - anyone else- stories..**

**Edited 8th August - Because of misunderstanding...lol I read some reviews that said I hate Yuna... I dont hate Yuna, just to clarify CLEARLY :P **

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**Chapter 12: Uncontrolled**

"Who are you?" I repeated, holding my stand.

"You are Tidus. Age: 18. Gender: Male. Born: Zanarkand. Currently residing: Zanarkand. Interests: Blitzball. Has a passion to bed females, which has recently changed to Art. Reason is unknown. Appearance: Short blonde hair, blue eyes and tanned skin. Height: 175cm. Weight: 69kgs. IQ: 90-120, depends on his mood. Star sign: Shiva. You are son of Elaine and Jecht…sorry, this needs to be updated. You are son of Elaine and Braska…"

"Shut up, and get to the point creep." I demanded.

"Okay, I'll get to the point. Go persuade your father to comply with our rules. Or else…"

"Who the heck are you?"

"That isn't important, do as I say or you'll suffer the consequences too."

"You wanna fight? Alright! I feel like kicking ass!" I hadn't felt so great in a while, so much stress has conjured up in my mind and body, and I needed somewhere to release it.

"Do as you please, but you will regret it." He said, as I saw him untying a large coat and twisting his wrists.

As a natural reaction to this, I scrunched up my fists, and tightened my black leather gloves. Gritting my teeth a bit, I glinted at his posture. Suddenly a blow struck in the middle of my stomach, knocking me back a step or two.

"Oh I get it" I said mockingly, "You don't play fair, sore losers." And before I finished the sentence a kick from one of the shadows connected. Ignoring the pain, I seized that leg and swung him out of the way. I knew how to fight, I had to learn. Jecht wasn't such an easy opponent when he was drunk…a blow in my stomach again. Grabbing that arm, I twisted it in my hands causing the 'enemy' to groan in pain as a loud crack echoed in the silence. Quickly seizing the chance, I fired towards one of the shadows and clipped his feet, making his stutter and losing his balance. Simultaneously, I groped his head and flipped him a revolution around, causing him to fall to the ground harmlessly.

"A fighter eh?" the so called 'Leader' announced, as he held up his arm and more of those shadows seamed into existence.

"Tidus, is that you?" A familiar voice called from behind me.

And then it hit me. BANG! A punch right in my face before I realised what had happened, just as I got distracted from the voice, causing me to hurl backwards several steps before I got my balance back again. Realising that I was ambushed, I spat out some blood and raise my hands in a defensive pose, just in case something of a sort happened again.

"Stop it. We are civilised enough aren't we?" that voice called out, as his dark shadowed slowly emerged from out of the gloom.

"Baralai?" I recognised.

"Listen, son of a rich bastard, lay off your hands and do it the civilised way. Show some integrity." Baralai coolly said.

"Listen Tidus, overnight son of a bastard, we will talk about this some other time. Lets go" as they seamlessly mystified into the abyss of the night.

"What's going on?" I asked, as I rubbed my sore cheeks. Pain can be ignored, but it still hurts nonetheless.

"I thought Yuna has explained this to you" he shook his head, and continued "I'll explain on the way. Come on."

"Okay…I'm confused…I got hit my Sin's toxic…so umm…my memories a little fuzzy…"

"Tidus, that's a poor excuse. You remember this morning's speech pretty well, on the history of high summoners" Baralai recalled.

"Yeah, that was because I read it not ten minutes before!" I laughed as I shoved my hands into the pocket of my jeans. There was a little silence between us as we laughed it off, but suddenly he turned to me and his face was full of seriousness.

"Listen Tidus, if I were you I would be careful. I wouldn't want to get stuck between the crossfire of a ten year war."

"What do you mean?" I inquired.

"Look, I'm not sure what Yuna told you, but I'll overlap on whatever she said. Apparently Braska and Jyscal are amidst a ten year political war in which neither side is willing to budge. Braska wanted the unified power of the whole of Spira under one government, for the good of the people of Spira. Jyscal is eyeing the Grand Maester position. They've tried all the tricks in the book, you name it, but now Jyscal has come up with a new move. The senate requires one extra vote to obtain the majority, and thus pass the bill down of a unified Spira. Unifying Spira means that there would no longer be states and territories, and everything would be standardised. Now you're father, wants a Spira in which accepts all the cultures but governed under a unified government in which it protects all its citizens. The Guado thinks that even cultures should be unified."

"Umm…Baralai? Could you please get to the point…my attention span isn't that high…"

"Okay, here it is plain and simple. Jyscal's plan. He'll let Lord Braska have his way, on the condition that their children are engaged."

"Okay, so he bent after all."

"Tidus…you do know that it means Jyscal's son and your sister."

"Oh…crap so that means Yuna?!?" I announced in surprise which sent waves of echoes in the small neighbourhood. It had taken me a while to diffract around the obstacle that I was Braska's son.

---

"Yuna!" I burst through the front door and saw her in the living room.

"What's the big deal?" she responded, still continuing to watch the sphere, where they had a 'how to cast White Magic Level 1' show on. She seemed confused and bewildered by my sudden appearance though.

"Are you going to be married to that son of a rich bastard?" I asked anxiously, as Baralai stepped in.

"Who?"

"Seymour" Baralai replied for me. As soon as he said that, she remained quiet, still not looking at either one of us.

"Yuna, you see its complex. Tidus was attacked by one of those guys just then. You still haven't told him right?"

She flipped her head around and exclaimed, "Tidus! What happened to your face?" as she ran to me and checked out my bruise. She reached out and held my hand, as if I was a child needing comforting. Nonetheless her hand felt warm and serene. Warm to only the extent of a sister though, only…

"I'm fine, just tell me what's going on with you and Seymour." I insisted, glaring intently at Yuna for a satisfactory answer.

"Nothing, he wants to scare me into marrying him that's all." She brushed it off, as though it was a tiny speck of dust not worth her attention.

"I have to go back now; my house is just a block further down the street. I'll see you tomorrow" he casually walked out, as we farewelled Baralai, seeing only his silver hair shine further and further away.

"So are you going to marry him?" I proceeded, immediately after Baralai's departure.

"Are you okay?" she moved closer so that she could be a better glimpse at the damage on my cheek.

Finally she frowned and replied, "I don't know, it all depends on what daddy wants." After saying so, she gently rubbed my cheeks, trying her best to sooth it. She fingers were soft against my skin, as I felt it tingle in its attempt to heal me of my wounds. Gently, I pulled my hand to clasp hers which rested smoothly on my face. I pressed her slim hands against my tanned skin, wanted it to be closer to me. Our eyes locked together as neither of us could say anything but stare at the sensational aura which densely surrounded us.

"Why is the door open?" a voice called which resembled Braska's.

We quickly let go of each other, as he stepped in and saw the two of us standing there in awe.

"Hey dad" Yuna and I said simultaneously as we turned to face him…woh freaky…

"What happened to your face son?" I turned the other way, concealing my wound even though he's seen it already.

"It's Seymour. They attacked him." Yuna answered for me, stepping forward to help Braska with the briefcase he was carrying.

"Jyscal's son? Is this about that proposal again? If not agreeing to his offer will result in this, I'll have to show him some other political lessons. You alright?" he bellowed as he took off his shoes.

"I'm fine, no worries." I replied, trying to get use to the tone in which Braska speaks in.

"Yuna, go help your brother with some antiseptic cream. There should be some in the cupboard, second from the right and in the fifth drawer." Braska said as he sat down on the couch and messaged his forehead. He was up to something…devising a comeback?

No one knew what Braska was thinking, but he was pretty quiet. Yuna pointed towards my room, inferring for us to go and talk there.

---

I lie on my bed, within a spacious house, staring at the ceiling, whilst Yuna knelt beside me trying to apply some red ointment. It really felt weird, that all of a sudden, my sister was helping me apply medicine on my face, and that this 'newly' found sister was in fact the girl in which I had a crush on for probably two years now. I tried not to think about it too much, especially right now having such thoughts is highly inappropriate. It felt awkward; I couldn't place it on what exactly was bothering me.

"Uh-oh Yuna how was your day?" I attempted to break the silence, rolling my eyes avoiding eye contact with anything at all.

"Oh, Rikku bugged me the whole day. It's not fun when you have a cousin like that, chirping around you" she explained briefly, whilst she cleaned the wound. Apparently there was a cut; probably that lousy guy was wear a sharp ring or something. Cheap ass.

"What about your day? Tell me about the accident." It sounded more like a demand rather than a request, but I suppose she has the right to know, for both our sakes.

"After leaving the mall slightly later than usual, I just started walking home. Then I met them. It's as simple as that." Even though I was lying down on the bed, I could feel my shoulders shrug.

"What did he say?"

"Oh I don't actually know why we started fighting. They were pretty hostile I suppose."

"Tidus, I want you know that they are dangerous people. I never thought that you would be sucked into all this commotion. But you did nonetheless. Whether you like it or not, we just have to deal with it." She said as she pulled out a bandage from the first aid box. It was _we_ that she said, and that was the most comforting thing I've heard all day.

"Yuna, do you still remember that day you were injured? It seems like the roles have been reversed now." I joked as I chuckled to myself.

"Yes, of course I do." She stood up and sat on the bed, leaning over to apply the bandage. "If I recall correctly, you had to carry me to your place. I was too tired then, but at least I felt warm in your…" she stopped abruptly.

Without a second thought, as if it was second nature, but of course it wasn't because my consciousness would never do something that I was about to do, I folded my arms around Yuna's waist and whispered "Does it feel warm now?".

She breathed nervously, and closed her eyes.

"Yuna, back then, not three days ago…did you ever like me?" My heart pounded loudly, as it heard it clearly as if echoing around the room and refracting straight back at me, as if I was the foci of all the nervousness in the world. Strange, definitely not me.

"Please don't Tidus." I suppose that sounded or _should have_ sounded pleading, but it enticed me more. I couldn't quite put the finger on it, but the way she said it didn't seem like she was begging for me to stop.

She didn't budge, or move. She made no attempt to remove my arms which were wound around her. Her arms were outstretched, as I recall…trying to fix the bandage on my cheek. She felt tense and to some extent stressed, but I couldn't tell if it was from today's events or from the current situation.

"Loosen up Yuna" I suggested softly, as I flipped her around and on top the bed. The bed was spacious so it would accompany us without either of us falling.

_Okay, what next Tidus? Wait a minute… you are asking yourself on what to do next?_

She felt weak and feeble in my arms, I rubbed her back trying to comfort her more. _Comfort her from fearing me?_

Her bare belly button, for she wasn't wearing very much in the first place, was pressed gently against my body. I had a sudden urge to kiss her, but something told me I shouldn't do it, that I would regret it later on. Her hair spread out, and her strands opened up like a stranded mermaid, she was helpless. I was contemplating, unable to decide which choice I was going to make. In fact, I was unable to do anything. I didn't know what to do, I needed her help on whether I should stop or not. If she had screamed out, or simply walked away, I would have stopped right there and then…but she opened her eyes and smiled a sad sad smile. Her eyes were watering, for then, and from then, I found out how she felt. She was contemplating on what she should do. Throwing human morality and social judgement aside, I leaned forward and kissed her. Just like two butterflies touched, our lips touched a simple comforting kiss. It felt like my understanding and hers flowed through our mouths and into each others hearts. We knew what we felt. It was forbidden.

* * *

**I dont know about other writers, but currently I have no structure on what the next chapter is about. Vagure idea only. Sometimes I dream up the next episode, sometimes I get a writers block...and other times...I bash through the forest...**

**Updating is slow... I know...but recently I have school exams and they are important...Slow writer doesn't mean I'll stop though...just going to take some time...might be some time before I put in a next chapter though, so take care everyone. **

**Note to self: It took me the same time to write about 6 chapters, than it took RikkuHoshi to write like 20...she's a machine :P in a good way of course. **


	13. Dealing with the Devil

**Yay! Finally, after sooooooo long, I manage to have time to write the next chapter! I was on a three week exam period, so I had to study! Sorry all, here's the next installment. I did get a little stuck, because I had forgotten most of the plot! lol! Yup an author forgetting their own plot...lol. I wrote the first bit about 4 weeks before the second...so there might be some kind of language discrepancy...yup I realised my english is getting horrible now! Anyways R &R.**

**Chapter 13: Dealing with the Devil**

The sun crept up silently, brightly emitting its vivid rays upon my eyes, as I felt the first sign of intense bright light emanating through the thin curtain blinds.

_Where am I?_ That was the first question that popped into my head, as I observed the surroundings. _Oh yeah, at 'home'. _Then everything flowed back to me, on what had happened last night. Silently, I turned to the sleeping beauty beside me and observed her in great detail. Her peaceful slumber. And the slow movements of her tummy occasionally bopping up and down. Her eye lashes started to flutter, just like I had felt last night; a butterfly.

It was then that reality had hit me. _What if Braska found out? _Not only would I be in deep trouble, but Yuna would have to suffer for that too.

"Yuna, wake up" I pushed her silently, much to my reluctance as I wanted to just stare at her, for the rest of eternity, forever and ever. As if time stopped, and it was just us two. _Dream on Tidus_._ You are so going to get screwed if Braska finds out. _

She stirred, and then suddenly opened her eyes wide open. As if she was on fire, she jumped onto the floor and hysterically looked shocked.

"What did we do last night?" she insisted, noticing that her hair was untidy.

"Nothing. Look your clothes, they are still on you aren't they? Calm down and clean up."

"What happened?" she repeated, glancing around.

"We just slept together, but nothing happened, I guess." I shrugged as I hopped out too.

"I'm so in for it when Daddy finds out!" she ran her fingers through her hair in an attempt to tidy herself up.

"You are right…I mean…you are my sister…"

"Tidus, we can't be together. Daddy won't allow it, society won't allow it. Most importantly, I can't stand the idea of incest and sleeping with my brother."

"You just did." I pointed out. I walked over to my dressing table- yes I have a dressing table apparently and scourged it to find a brush and handing it to her.

Silence fell from its shackles as there was an awkward silence building up between us.

"Look Tidus, just leave me alone, okay? Please…"

"Okay…"

Without another word from her, she ran out of the door and closed the door shut.

---

Luckily that morning I discovered that Braska had been in his study all night, I have no idea why he was there but that saved my ass, to some respect. Breakfast was awfully quiet; I didn't want to 'disturb' Yuna, as she seemed to be deeply concentrated on some train of thought.

---

"Tidus! Could you repeat what I just said?"

"Errr, Turn to page 100?"

"Nice try Tidus, but no. I want to have a little chat with you after class."

Gippal who sat beside me tapped me on the arm and peered over his shoulder, shaking his head slightly.

"What's wrong with you Tidus?"

"Nothing" I replied, absent-mindedly tapping my pen and staring blankly at the page.

"You are normally not like this…never mind…" Gippal commented uselessly.

I couldn't help but chuckle to myself a bit, Gippal hasn't changed at all.

"Tidus, do you know where you are going?" Mr Maechen inquired, sitting back in his wide chair and crossing his arms. He looked fairly sternly, his white beard curling under the table as if ready to act like a whip at any second.

"I'm going to be a Blitzball star" I announced, perhaps a little too loudly because I '_felt_' other students peering in from the open classroom door. Maybe I should be more discrete and less proud, since I AM busted.

"Now, Tidus I understand to get into Blitzball school, they still require academic achievements right?"

"Yes, sir" I replied, looking down at my feet, my mind was starting to wonder already.

"And their requirement is?" He further investigated, tapping his fingers lightly on the table, to my observation he was pretty calm.

"A band of 6, which is pretty high I guess…because that's a mark of 90+" Maechen was being an ass; I knew that he knows exactly the requirements. He's just trying to make me look like a fool.

"Should you not be working hard then?" His interrogation continued, as I felt the pressure heighten.

I stayed quiet; I honestly did not know how to answer that question. If I said yes, that would mean I admitted to my fault, and Tidus NEVER does that. If I said no, that's just stating I'm stupid. Either way, it's a lose-lose situation.

"I think you should have some before school lessons with me Tidus. Either that or you should apply for tuition at a college. The choice is yours." He held out both his hands, symbolising the two options I was given.

"Sir, it's kind of you to help me out but…" I was cut off.

"Tidus, take it or I will have to kick you out of the course. I know you need history, because it makes up for your 5 subjects."

That was a mean trick to play; I had no choice because I was completely trapped inside his web.

"I'll come to before school lessons." I muttered reluctantly.

"Fine, what day are you free?"

"Not on Wednesday mornings because I have a game that night. Thursday mornings are bad because I would be…tired" right… I scoffed, more like I have a huge hang over for celebrating.

"Tidus, I'm not asking you for when you are busy. I'm asking you for a day you are free." He said in a commanding authoritative tone.

"Tuesday" I said finally, since today was Wednesday, I still had another week to 'prepare' for this little encounter.

"Ok Tidus, I know what you are thinking, but lets have it your way. One day isn't enough per week, I need another day."

This bastard! He's really pushing me this time. I gritted my teeth, and said nothing.

"How about Monday, Tidus? Two days in a row, get it over and done with eh?"

"Fine" I muttered, and turned casually away, stuffing everything into my bag and slung it over my shoulder, walked away without another word.

Two days of confinement Tidus! You didn't even rebut or haggle! I'm going to suffer…I'm so screwed!

---

"Yo Tidus, I heard you got snapped by Old Maechen. So what happened?"

"How the…did you hear it so fast?" I turned my head up from sipping my cold ice tea, and faced the speaker.

"News travels fast and faster still if you got snapped." He laughed; he patted my back as if I needed comforting.

"Shut up Gippal."

"Woh, chill down! Here drink some more ice tea!" After a minute of scuffling around, of him avoiding a serious punch from me, he asked again.

"So what happened?"

"He just said I needed to perform better, and I needed tutoring or morning class."

"You know Tidus, I think it might be good for you" Baralai pointed out. I realised his well tanned skin blended well with the white hair of his, especially under such a big umbrella, but that was beside the point.

"Maybe Tidus will learn something useful." Nooj commented, smirked slightly as he continued to pay the remaining time attending to the person next to him. (Obviously someone I didn't' have to name)

"Say, Tidus, don't you have a game tonight?" Baralai asked, cutting a piece of lamb with his knife. Everyone knew he was a highly sophisticated person from a superior social class, I guess he has to act civilised and indifferent to the rest of us.

"Yeah I do, it's against the Zanarkand B-West, and it's the opening match! We will thrash them!" I announced enthusiastically.

"Glad to hear that Tidus" Paine added sarcastically, whilst chatting with two girls beside her. Lenne and Yuna.

"Yeah, I'm sure you are" I replied, imitating her tone, 70 sarcastic and 30 angry tone. And for the sake of it, another 10 annoyance tone, of course if that is even possible.

Baralai grabbed me, and tried to make me stay quiet.

"Don't mess with Paine, Tidus" he whispered in my ear.

"I guess that was a bad idea huh?" as I noticed Paine glaring at me with those blood thirsty red eyes, crimson in colour. Lenne was also looking interested at this haphazard occurrence. Only Yuna looked away, and sipped her drink, totally uninterested.

---

Students rushed to and fro, hustling and bustling to the school buses and their own private cars. I stood at the front gate, along with Yuna, waiting for the chauffeur to pick us up. Apart from the loud, celebrative sounds coming from the other students, which surrounded us, there was no talking between us.

"Bye Tidus!" Rikku shouted, shuffling through the crowded, and running passed us.

"See you Rikku" I called back, as I heard Yuna also call out something. I stepped onto the dried out grass, and stood there, glancing around but by now most of the students have left and only a few people were here. At the corner of my eye, I saw Yuna, finding a little kid, possibly a Yr 7, and chatting with him. She was sitting on a wooden bench, and the kid was carrying a bag which was far too heavy and bulky for his size.

At the bend, a black long car pulled around and opens its doors. Yuna and I got in silently, no interaction with each other.

Later that afternoon, I found Braska sitting on the couch, with his feet resting on a small soft. His eyes were fixated upon the newspaper he was holding up in front of him.

"Is something wrong?" I asked, having a sensation of peculiarity.

"Oh, it's you son. Nothing is wrong, I just feel tired that's all." He continued reading the paper.

"I just felt something was going on, since you were so silent after yesterday night" I said, taking a seat on a longer couch perpendicular to his.

"So," he said diverging my thoughts, "What happened at school today?"

"I don't want to talk about it, I made a deal with the devil today."

"How so?" he said interestingly.

"My teacher was the devil. He made me go to morning tuition twice a week." I replied, sighing a little.

"Oh, I guess it wasn't too bad right? I mean, it's good for you isn't it?"

"Well, I don't know."

"Tidus, I made a deal too, today." He said, closing the paper.

"Oh, a political one?" I asked.

"I'm not sure how you would call it. It does have political intentions, but I guess it was for personal and family too." He sighed, folding the paper and placing it on the table next to the sofa.

"It's about your sister." He said, after he had done so.

"Oh really?" I commented, trying to sound interested, though I didn't care much now. It was mostly over between Yuna and me. Except for the fact that we are in the same family. Isn't it weird? What holds us apart also holds us together?

"Last night you were attacked by the Guado"

"Yes, I know, she told me about it."

"Guado's leader Jyscal wants more power, and is forcing Yuna to marry his son Seymour."

"Yeah, she also told me that too."

"You met Seymour didn't you?" he asked.

"He's the one with blue anti gravity hair?"

Braska chuckled and nodded.

"So, I don't know what you're talking about. You are always so twisting in your ways of talking." I said, as I closed my eyes, I needed rest and the last thing I needed was another political lesson. Even though I might save my life some day, I scoffed at that idea, I had a game tonight and I needed a nap.

"I have to be like this, otherwise it's hard to be in the political game." He laughed.

"Anyhow, I figured out a way to prevent all this." He continued.

"Ah, so this was what you were up to last night in the study?" I was beginning to understand now.

"Yes, it was. I planned a counter move to completely stop the attacks on my family members." He stood up, quite proudly and turned to look out through the window sill. There was a bright sky, with a setting sun at the brink of the horizon. It wasn't getting dark yet though.

"What might that be?"

"Remember how I said I made a deal today?"

"Yes, I do"

"I made a deal with the Praetor, signing an agreement on the marriage of his son to my daughter."

I sat there, still listening to those words storming around in my mind.

* * *

**Day of the Week : Wednesday **

**Just to be less confusing when I read this again and try to figure out the story, so that time doesn't jump. TT I'm still a noob at this...lol**


	14. Stardom or Boredom?

**It took sooo long to write this chapter. I've been incredibly busy these few weeks and I'm pretty sure I'll be busier the next few weeks. Yup, major exams in 18 days!!!!!!!! Aaaa Why am I doing this anyway... heck, just for the sake and fun of it all.**

* * *

**Chapter 14: Stardom or Boredom?**

"What's wrong?" He turned around, hands inserted into his pockets.

Praetor's son… isn't that Baralai…why would his father agree to an outdated thing such as marriage arrangements by parents?

"Tidus?" Braska waved his hand in front of my eyes. I blinked, and struggled to get our of my afternoon 'dream'.

"Yes?" blinking a few times as I looked up to meet his eyes.

"Nothing, you seem a little out of it today. Maybe you should have a rest."

I slowly stood up too, sighing deeply, "I can't, and I've got a game tonight."

"Oh I see. Sorry son, I can't be there for you…"

"Don't fret about it" I cut him off, "I'm sure I'll manage by myself."

"Hmmm, maybe I should let Yuna represent me. I see you two have gone on very well."

"No" I shouted out abruptly.

"Why not?" He looked at me with those permeating eyes, as if it was infiltrating my mind and prying within it to seek for secrets.

"Err, umm, nothing." I bluntly murmured, scratching my head trying to find a reason.

"Then it's settled, I'll let Yuna know at once." And with that, he left the lounge.

What exactly is going on with me Tidus? I asked myself silently, as I sunk back into the couch, rubbing my temples. I felt that this sudden change of environment was impacting upon me somehow. Perhaps I wasn't perfectly sure how to assimilate into this life with haste. Recently I guess I just wasn't the normal me.

-

A few minutes later, I was sitting in the car, tapping my fingers lightly upon the wheel, and staring off into the sky. I'm not exactly sure what had gone on, but somehow Braska, had persuaded Yuna that he definitely wanted to watch my game yet couldn't make it. In other words, he literally bribed Yuna to go to my game. I mean, it's not that important or anything, I wouldn't care if neither of them showed up. Since competing in a game was in fact, a game between my team mates, friends and colleagues. Perhaps there was an ulterior motive too, that is Wakka really did decide to put me as keeper. And well, let's say Keepa stole my spot. The point of all this, was to say, I was rather pissed. It was a bit like falling from grace, a high star player status to a low stationary goal keeper. I recall when I was small, Jecht had always kicked Blitzballs into the goals, and since it was just himself, I was forced to be the goal keeper. And trust me; you DON'T want to be a goal keeper. I remember that every time after this supposed "training", I would collapse onto my bed with bruises and scratches all over me. It makes me wonder how fast a ball could travel, with the sheer high resistive force of the water…seriously makes me wonder…

"Are we going yet?" A light tap on the closed glass window of the car, accompanied by an emotionless face, as I slipped out of this day dream, or shall I say, afternoon dream, and flicked the switch to unlock the door.

"Sorry" I said apologetically, pulling a seatbelt and turning on the ignition.

Taking a left at the next traffic light, I felt the need to start a conversation so I croaked out in a dry rasp - possibly the tiredness had got to me- and said "Hey, Yuna. How did Braska manage to persuade you to come?"

"That's Father or Dad to you, Tidus. Please show some respect now that you've come into my family and my life" she said coldly.

I remained quiet, perhaps it was to avoid that particular question, or perhaps I just simply didn't know the correct answer to that. A few minutes apt, despite of what I was thinking, I decided to break the silence.

"I just can't change that fast Yuna, honestly. I keep repeating this to myself that it's the fact that everything around me in the past few days has changed so rapidly. It was as if my normal life rhythm has somehow sped up. Dramatically" iterating the last word, before taking a peak at the mirror to see Yuna's face was still utterly emotionless.

"Tidus, everything that has happened to you, well almost everything," she corrected herself, "everything that occurred to you has also to some extent influenced me. It's not like I don't have to adapt to this change. Try not to be so selfish please." Cold as ice, actually more than that, possible as cold as liquid oxygen.

I thought about her statement, but nonetheless I decided not to reply to that. A barrier of some sort had somehow built itself around us, cutting us apart into our different worlds. A barrier which was stronger than a physical wall. Perchance, an emotional wall was what it was called. I didn't know. I didn't care either. I did know, however that I felt isolated. We were so close, close enough that if I outstretched my arms, I could touch her. Her steady breathing and at certain intervals, her nervous gulp could be heard. Of course, most of this was covered by the noise from outside, the other kinds of transport which were rushing home from work, and bats in the sky flying out for their nocturnal feast. They were unimportant, and almost insignificant. I wondered, how I could drive and think about all this simultaneously, I wondered, seriously I did. At the edge of my vision, a small bright sparkle rolled down Yuna's eyes, the mirror of which I saw, a bitter sweet reflection of this life. This new one.

-

The car rolled smoothly as it inched towards the curb. From within the car, blazing lights of the Blitzball stadium could be seen, flaring its bright rays to light up the night sky. Amidst it all, three lights of the primary colours combined together to form a faint hologram of a Blitzball above the stadium.

Yuna, who sat quietly beside me, watched the flares permeating through the evening gloom with a tint of delight.

"What's with the lights?" she asked exquisitely.

"It's the beginning of the new season, so I guess there's a need for celebration."

"I never knew the school was that rich." She commented, as she opened the door, getting ready to move out.

"Me neither", climbing out of the car and taking it all in. I might have been at this school for 6 years or so, but each time the experience is a little different, a little more exhilarating. Somehow…

"And so many people are here." Yuna peered around, glancing at the crowd moving to and fro in a rush. From within the crowd, a figure stood out from the rest, one with tall standing hair, coloured reddish orange. He was wearing a stripped T-shirt with shorts.

"By the way, its autumn now, I always thought Blitzball season was during summer isn't it?"

"I don't know either. It might have been a new idea implemented by the Zanarkand's Sporting Council. The city gets a lot of its revenue from televising this crap, you know?" I said, walking towards the red haired man.

"Tidus." Yuna called, making me turn back and look at her. "Don't swear in front of me." What's with her? First she was cold as bone, and then she was being naïve and kind of cute. Now all of a sudden she acts as if she's my mother. No, she's my sister, so she acts as if she was my older sister or something.

"And you are my older sister?" I asked, in the same cold way she did, mimicking her tone and attitude to show my annoyance of being controlled. Perhaps it was a little overboard, because she flipped around and ran towards the audience end of the entrance. I felt that I needed to explain my sudden outburst of anger, but the red haired figure seemed to have something urgent to say.

"Hey, how's it going Wakka?" tapping him on the shoulder and walking alongside him into the Stadium entrance.

"Not good Tidus. You do know how to catch a ball ya?" his face full of a notion of worried and distraught.

"Umm sure, why? Are you worried that I won't be able to catch a ball? And that if I can't do it, I can't be a good keeper and thus, well you know. We lose the match." I blurted out, rather pissed that he was underestimating me and of my abilities.

"Tidus…I know you are a good striker, but I've checked your statistics on catching and blocking. They aren't very well. We really need you to keep your act up tonight ya?" he said, scratching his tall standing hair, trying to think of the most polite way of expressing it.

"Leave it to me." I gestured, pointing towards my chest, giving him number one cheesy smile.

-

I didn't feel like listening to the 'team' plan today, after all what plan do you need for the goal keep anyway? I looked at the five others: Datto, Letty, Jassu, Botta, and of course the one I had a position change with, Keepa. The Locker Room was awfully quiet since there was only the 7 of us. Gippal was in the team before, but he got kicked out after having a little dispute with some of the team mates…I scoffed, because I did feel a little alienated from this environment, I was the star player of this team, emphasis on _was_.

"Yo Tidus, aren't you going to listen to what we have planning for them? D-North isn't going to be easy this year." Wakka commented, taking a seat next to me on the wooden bench.

"Is there seriously any point? I mean, I'm a keeper. What plans do you have for me? Catch the ball?" I said, with a huge tint of scientism in my tone. He remained quiet.

"Tidus, its only temporary I hope." Datto pointed out.

"Yeah, when you get your concentration back…I'm sure Wakka will let you have your position back…" Keepa said, but of course he was just pretending to nice. Why would he want to get his old boring position back anyway?

"Hey look, the sphere is getting filled with water already. Let's go!" Botta stated.

"Alright! Let's Blitz!" Jassu exclaimed, being the first one to run out into the crowd.

-

Oh my god, the game just started for less than 2 minutes, and all I have done was staring at the ball being tossed from team members to opposing team members. In other words, I've done absolutely jack crap. I hate to use that language, because usually it doesn't refer to delightful situations. I felt boredom already. The ball was almost always in the middle area, neither team's goal keeper had done anything just yet. My mind started to wonder, as I wanted to know where Yuna was. Was she watching the sullen state that I was in, or was she just chatting with her friends. I didn't see her anyway, nor did I see any of my 'usual' friends. The lights within the stadium were bright and exhilarating, but somehow that didn't penetrate the water's surface and give the aura to me. I had once learnt in science of light refraction and reflection…perhaps that was what was happening at the moment.

"Tidus!" A sudden scream came from Wakka, as I saw a ball hurtling towards me. What do I do! What… I remember what Keepa would normally do at this time…I stretched my hands and jumped towards the ball, catching it with my hands.

Or so I hoped…but the ball seemed to be made from soap, as it slipped out of my grasp and right into the goals! Darn it! I was being a full klutz today.

"First Blood! 1-0, D-North's way!" a bellowing voice shouted on the loudspeaker.

And within another few seconds, the bell rang for the end of the first half.

-

"Tidus, what is wrong with you. You were staring into the stars weren't you? You know what I'm talking about, ya?" Wakka's face was red with embarrassment.

Well, the harms already done, and I could do nothing to prevent that shot…

"Just look at you Tidus. Everyone is laughing their heads off at your stupidity. Even a kindergarten would have blocked that shot. My grandma could do better than you!" Wakka continued his speech of doom, humiliating me as much as he could. It did have some effect however, but I'm Tidus. I'm a striker, how could I be a keeper all of a sudden?

"Wakka, make me striker and I'll win the match for you." I suggested, leaning against the wall, as I hardly broke a sweat, whereas the others were having a tough time panting and catching their breaths.

"I'm sorry; I can't do that for ya."

"Why not? You're the coach, you can do anything."

"I can't, and you know that ya? A coach gotta still stick to the rules ya? You just can't alter the rules all by yourself, just like the rules set by the Blitzball society ya?"

"Fine, do whatever." And with that I walked out of the Lockers, back into the stadium. In the adjacent hallway, someone captured my attention. It was a darkish player from the D-South, with a green Mohawk. It makes me wonder how he remains to be streamline, whiles he swims, and retain that spiky hair. He saw me and sneered. He stood up from the wooden spectator bench, and gestured for me to walk towards him.

"So you're Tidus?" he asked.

"Yeah, what do you want?" I replied, in a cold tone, I didn't want to get too close to opposing.

"Didn't your mother ever teach you to catch a ball?" he cocked his head and laughed. He was much taller than me, with his Mohawk, his stature would probably reach 195cm, and it would be unwise to start a fight in such an open place.

"No she didn't. She only taught me to kick a ball. On the other hand, I know that all your mother ever taught you was how to pass on your genes to the next generation. I'm sure I could handle it without my mum teaching me." I scoffed and turned around to walk away.

"Tidus, you remember. We will thrash you tonight."

"Sure thing, empty threats and empty words. See you in the sphere."

-

_Alright, the second half of the match is just about to begin. In the first half, the D-North team manage to get a sleazy soft shot into the A-East goals. Let's see what the A-East have as a counterattack in this half. Lets Blitz!_

The booming voice in the speaker bellowed, as the sphere once again started to fill with water. Wakka walked up from behind me and placed his hand on my shoulder.

"Listen Tidus, I know I was a little grumpy just then, but after your fumble with the most simplistic shots, I was just angry. I know you are a great player, but you gotta prove it to me. Since the trials, you weren't into the game. I simply can't allow my members to be out there, we can't afford mistakes like the one you just made. I know that if you concentrate, you can do well. I believe in ya."

"Thanks Wakka, I'll try my best." I waved to him as we all dived in the water and swam a few laps to warm our muscles. Even the water felt warmer. Rather than the sensation of cold and freezing, it felt…welcoming. Like I was a dolphin or something. It just felt right. I couldn't put my finger on why.

Now that's that…back to being the 'spectator' to the match. Letty has the ball, who swam a few metres and quickly passed to Datto. Datto glanced around to find the next person to pass it to, but was intercepted by the 'Green Mohawk' guy. From afar, it seems Datto was able to withstand the tackle, as he quickly passed it to Keepa. And Keepa shoots…A set of outstretched arms groping for possession of the ball…The D-North Keeper managed to block the ball.

_And so! What do we have here? The A-East Team's old Goalie, ironically named Keepa shoots for the goals! Just to be blocked by the D-North goalie. But wait! Keepa instinctively dived for the ball, and he…whacked it forwards…GOAL!_

A whistle was blown! 1-1. Even so, we still couldn't win. Despite that fluke goal, we still couldn't win the match. It's slim of the rarest chances to score another goal within the remaining time, which was 2minutes.

The Blitzball shot up in the water, and both Mids zipped through the water towards it.

_D-North obtains possession of the ball! Woh! What's with the Mohawk! He's dashing forward, intrinsically dodging the entire team. _

Here he comes. He stopped about a few metres in front of the goals and got ready to shoot. Concentrate Tidus! You have to catch the ball! Concentrate! Wait! Why did I have to catch the ball…?

He blasted the ball forwards, and I spun around and strained all my leg muscles…Bang! I countered the ball, and kicked it with terrific speed towards the other end of the field. Ouch! My foot was sore; I don't think I can do that again, as I started to grow faint…still listening to the commentary…

_What's this? The A-East Goalie kicked the ball all the way into D-North's territory…it's gone through the field…and right through the keeper's outstretched grasp! GOAL! Ladies and Gents, I've never see that happen in my life. _

Well, I guess I did it…I scored…

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**This is the longest chapter yet. Sooo tired. Well, it looks like Tidus managed to score a goal from the other side of the field. I wonder what he can't do o.O lol. Till next time, cya!**


	15. The Girls

**Yay! This is the longest chapter yet! I think I'm challenging myself in writing longer and longer chapters...With not much left to say...here it is.**

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I floated there quietly, absorbing it all in. The bright lights in the stadium refracted brightly throughout the dome. It was a truly beautiful sight, because it was filled with the essence of victory. That last shot had taken quite a lot of energy, because I had never felt my body so drained and deprived of energy ever before. But lying on my back, just quietly floating there, soaking up all the rays of success did indeed revitalise me.

-

"That was an awesome shot Tidus!" my team mates cried out aloud, when I climbed out of the sphere pool.

"Yeah, what did you expect?" I knew I was being cocky, but I felt like doing so. It's kind of like a habit, that comes back every hour and then.

"I expected you would catch the ball, ya? Or at least use your head to somehow save the goals." Wakka walked up to me, with his 'World Champion Smile' and tapped me on the shoulder, "but what you did was quite acceptable."

"As if Wakka, that was just acceptable it was great!" I cried out aloud, holding the Blitzball and spinning it on my forefinger.

"How did you come up with that move anyway?" Letty pulled his arm over my shoulder, and laughed.

"I don't know, maybe it's called natural instinct?"

"Woh, Tidus's natural instinct! Anyhow, it was great. Maybe you should teach it to me sometimes" Keepa said, giving me a "thumbs" up.

"And maybe you could teach me how to catch a ball, someday." I laughed; it was great that the whole team was back together and happy again.

"Hey, hold it right there ya all. Who said Tidus is going to continue to be goalkeeper ya?" Wakka gave me a wink, "He's got his old position back again!"

"Aw what about me?" asked Keepa, perhaps his voice had a tint of anxiety.

"You get ya old position again!" Wakka blurted out in laughter.

He looked down for a moment, as if he was depressed but then looked up and said, "Well it was fun playing in another spot for a while, but I guess I'm just suited to be the Keeper…even my parents knew it, thus I was named after it." I chuckled at that remark.

"Oi! Losers! Are you too chicken to play Blitzball?" a voice from the other side of sphere struck my ears.

"Who are you calling losers? We clearly won fair and square." Jassu shouted back.

"Zanarkand A-East school of course!" he cried out back. It was one of the players from C-Duggles. He was named Bickson, he had short brown hair and his look definitely made him look dorky.

"We just won! I wouldn't be talking, you C-Duggles are going to fall too!" I screamed back at the top of my lungs, his appearance and attitude was indeed one of the most annoying and agitating that I've come across.

"Tidus! Your team is a pile of crap! You having an all male team, picking on a team of girls ain't a fair one, don't you think?" I looked across at the D-North team and indeed, they had 3 females and 2 males.

"Get to the point!" I said bluntly.

"Since the Blitzball confederation allowed girls to participate in Blitzball, shouldn't you be less biased? Stop discriminating against females!" he sneered, and disappeared over the rails. I could hear his loud laughing from all the way over here.

"What an idiot!" I sighed, as I sat back down on the cold wooden bench.

"He's right, kind of you know" Botta pointed out, he looked around at us, obviously implying that we were all guys.

"Wakka, maybe we should import some girls to play yeah?" Letty said, "And then we would win them, and they would have nothing left to say in defiance."

"Ya, I was just thinking about that. But there's one slight problem…" he said, scratching his head.

"What?" we all called out in unison.

"I don't think we have the time to train another team of girls to be Blitz players ya?" he said.

"Don't worry, we can teach them!" Letty called out, giving a nudge to Datto, who seemed confused at the reason for the nudge. "You know…get to know them better!"

"Letty, we're serious here" I pointed out, but still in deep thought. Hmm, a team with a male/female mix…that could mean we'll lose the finals…no it doesn't Tidus. Who are you? You're Tidus! Since when have you lost any Blitzball matches? Whichever team has me, that am the winning team, isn't that right Tidus? Yup, that's the two sides of me fighting it out, within my mind. One side of me didn't believe in my abilities, the other was too confident.

"Okay, okay. We're here to play Blitzball; this is not a dating gathering. Tomorrow, we'll start the trials to see which players can join our team. We might even adjust a few of you guys too. Got it ya?" Wakka said, authoritatively.

"Right." I replied.

-

"Good game tonight Tidus" Yuna said, after the crowded dissipated, it had already gotten dark outside by now, obviously. The parking lot was still busy with traffic, students rushing to their cars, or their parents picking them up. Perhaps it was because there was a game tonight on the sphere, or they just didn't do their homework, but whichever it was the gathering quickly split up.

"Not good, it was great!" I held my arms over my head, breathing the clean evening air.

"Glad to hear that" she smiled. It was the first smile I had see, the whole of tonight, or since that time…

"So Yuna, have you ever played Blitzball before?" I asked casually.

"No, I haven't. I hardly know the rules. Paine had to tell me about the rules."

"Paine was here?" I inquired.

"Yes she was. So was everyone else, but they left already." She said quietly, stepping down from the curb and onto the car park.

"Oh, I see." I simply replied.

After a few seconds, I had the sudden urge to blurt out, "Hey Yuna, you know what would be really cool? That you try out for the team tomorrow."

"Tidus, I know nothing about Blitzball." She replied, looking around for the car.

"Car's here. Yeah but you know how to swim don't you?" I pointed out, as I pressed to unlock the car.

"I barely know how to swim. Even if I knew how to swim, I wouldn't know how to kick a Blitzball within one night."

I opened the car door, and pull on the seat belt, "At least it's a good start. Yuna, we have a huge Blitzball sphere in our backyard! I mean, why is there a Blitz sphere there in the first place?"

"I don't know, it was then when we moved into it. Probably the previous owner liked Blitzball or something. Alright, let's take it one step back. I can't learn how to Blitz in one day." She said, as I ignited the car, and manoeuvred the car onto the street.

"Yeah…but…" I muttered, trying to invent some new comeback, but I couldn't.

-

"Why did you run off like that?" I asked when I saw him at lunchtime, on the Thursday, the day after the Blitzball match with D-North.

"Oh we didn't want to see you and upset you because you were goalie" Gippal cried out, he was in tears laughing.

"Hey shut up! Anyways I'm not goalie anymore, so there!" I rebutted back, grabbing the stuff from my locker. I was hungry, and there wasn't any food prepared so I had to buy something. Perhaps the cafeteria sounds nice.

"Yeah well, it was a good shot you did. Flew all the way across the field." He said, swinging a backpack on his shoulders and walking along with me to the store.

"Say, what's going on with you and Rikku? You normally wouldn't hang out with me at lunchtimes." I announced, taking a left at the end of the corridor.

"Can't friends hang out for once?" He replied.

"Friends can hang out. But it's abnormal for Gippal, the ladies man to hang out with his friends, because he usually hangs out with Rikku."

"Well, things happen."

"What happened now Gippal? What did Rikku do again?" I stepped through the door, into the cafeteria, to see that most of the students were already filling the seats and benches.

"I don't want to talk about it." He said. I left him there, to buy some lunch and returned a few minutes later with a hamburger which had three layers in the middle. I was hungry.

"Spill it Gippal, I know something's going on. Dude, I've known you since we were little. What's there to hide, bro?" I said, pushing the glass door again to walk out of the store. I didn't want to sit with the crowd, it felt uncomfortable.

"It's really something extremely small. This morning, Rikku saw a notice on the wall as she came to school. She told me she wanted to join the Blitzball team." He stopped.

"That's great! What's the deal! Don't worry; I'm sure she'll have great fun!" I exclaimed, before taking a huge bite into the hamburger.

"Tidus, you know as well as I do that Blitzball is a full contact sport. I mean, she's so small and fragile, she's totally harmless. I'm afraid she could get hurt."

"Don't be stupid Gippal. You're such a girl now. She'll do fine! Plus I'll be there too; you just let me handle it. After all, she is half my cousin…when you come to think about it." I wish she wasn't though…

"That doesn't relieve my worries a single bit. I've seen guys like Bickson; they are huge, taller than me with my hair sticking up!"

"You gotta let her do what she wants, Gip." I said, as we stepped outside and onto the green grass. It was a wonderful day because the sky was clear, not a cloud in sight and the cool wind was blowing the tree leaves in such a way that they swayed and danced to the music of the shouting of the children in the playground. Yes I call them children, because they were half my size, no joke.

"Let's check them out" I suggested, pointing to the Blitzball stadium.

He shook his head.

"Why not Gippal? Let's just have a look." I reassured him, pulling his arm and forcing him towards the stadium.

-

"Wow, there's so many people here trying out for the team." I exclaimed, looking at the long line of girls who wanted to try out.

"Look over there." Gippal gestured towards a small accumulation of girls. Of course, he was pointing to Rikku, I only saw the back of her but her gleefulness and giddiness created a metaphysical aura around her. Next to her was Paine, just glaring at Rikku like she is going to kick her ass. And next to her was…I rubbed my eyes, clearing them of the blurriness. It was Yuna, why was she here? Chatting with her friends, I reckon.

"Hi girls!" I approached them, flashing Gippal a look for him to say something. He just stood there, smiling slightly.

"Hey ya Tidus, I haven't seen you for ages! I could be on your team!" Rikku screeched, jumping up and down on her toes.

"Oh, great! Isn't it?" I gave Gippal a nudge, and pulling him to step forward.

"Yeah, sure, wish you all luck." He said, rubbing his eye patch and letting me get the message that he was being sarcastic.

"Stop being a goofball, let her do what she wants" I leaned over and whispered to him, making sure the girls couldn't hear.

When I turned back to the girls, I could see that Wakka, who apparently was the 'host' of this event walk up on the steps and getting ready to address us.

"I see that we have quite a crowd here today ya? First of all, I would like to congratulate everyone because you had the courage to come here ya? ..." and he went on, whilst I snuck up on Yuna, and whispered in her ear "Why are you here?"

"To play Blitzball, like you suggested yesterday." She replied.

"You what? Yuna, with all due respect…" I began, perhaps a little too loudly because Gippal seemed to have overheard it and tapped me on the shoulder, signalling for me to shut up.

"Yuna is planning to try out for MY Blitzball team" I whispered to Gippal.

"Let her do what she wants" he said, in the same tone I told him not two minutes prior.

"She'll get hurt." I replied quietly, not paying a bit attention to what Wakka was saying.

"You can protect her can't you?" Gippal said, for he was using all my arguments against me.

-

"Yippee! I made it" exclaimed Rikku aloud. Gippal was shaking his head throughout.

"Calm down Gippal, I'll take good care of her during the games" I announced, ruffling Rikku's hair, pretending she was like my little sister.

"Hey! Quit it! You are not my parents!" she shrieked, tidying her hair.

"Firstly, your hair is soaked, thus it doesn't matter. Secondly, I know I'm not your parent, but I am your older cousin, so I can treat you like that" I laughed.

"Hey you're not my cousin…" she paused, and held her mouth shut, pouting her lips.

In the sphere pool, I could see Paine dashing about, tackling the trainer (one of my team mates) and almost beating him up. And soon, she walked out of the sphere pool, seeming as if she had just won a brawl.

"Paine, how did it go?" I ask, knowing the answer already.

"They are chickens." Was all she replied, along with that red scarlet glare which sent shivers down my back. If there ever was a day when I had a fight, I would wish that Paine was on my side, rather than the one I'm fighting against. That glare, could kill.

I figured that most of the girls here hardly know about Blitzball, let alone having to play it. Watching a match and knowing the rules is one thing, but once you are inside that Blitzball arena, it's like a battlefield, where your survival depends on your team mates and vice versa.

The line was getting short, and soon the trials were going to be over. I looked around to find Yuna, but I couldn't spot her anyway. But upon further inspection, I saw her hiding behind the line, for she was the last in the line.

"What's wrong?" I said when I walked up to her.

"Nothing, Rikku managed to convince me to come and see it. But there are so many other girls; I'm not the sporty type, just look at all the other girls. They are much taller, and healthier than me. How on Spira would I manage to get in?" she said.

"Don't worry Yuna; just remember that you can do it! I believe so." I responded, even against my inner thoughts of protecting her. She needed confidence, right now at a moment like this.

"Yunie! What are you doing here?" Rikku chirped from behind, as I turned around to see that they spotted us, and are walking towards us.

Whilst Rikku and Yuna talked, I decided to have a chat with Gippal.

"What Tidus?" he said, in his boring tone.

"You should be excited that Rikku got on the team." I said, as we took a seat on the steps a far from the girls.

"Why should I be?" he questioned.

"Do you love her?" I asked bluntly, watching the sphere and seeing that indeed some of these girls didn't know hold their breath for 5minutes. Blitzball hadn't been open to females until recently, so most of the girls hardly played it. I guess if there's a really masculine female, like Paine for instance, then they would have made the team. I guess the only reason why Rikku made the team was because she knows how to swim very well. Up to this point, the only other girl who was selected was Naida. I saw her swim, and it was fast! I daresay it was faster than me.

"Of course I do, I'm totally whipped by her." Gippal replied after much thought. I figured I could multitask, that is talk to Gippal and watch the game at the same time.

"Then you should love whatever she is fond of. And that the current moment, she is in love with Blitzing." I pointed out, despite what I said previously, I turned towards him and looked him straight in the eye.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I'll have a think about it, and talk to her later. Now Tidus, what is with you and Yuna?"

"Nothing" I said quickly.

"It doesn't look like it to me. You care for her a lot. Her safety is very important to you." He said, and it was a rather accurate judgement.

"She's my sister." I murmured, and I turned towards the sphere.

"You seem to be taking it far beyond what a brother and a sister's relationship though."

"Shut up Gippal, I want you to keep out of this matter."

"Okay, I'm just telling you. You should do what you feel most right. Use your heart, not your mind, because the mind often fools you." He said. As soon as he said that, I looked at him and gave him a "where did you get that?" look.

"Lord Zaon once said it."

"Oh." I muttered. I didn't care.

"Look, it's almost Yuna's turn." He said.

I ran down the steps, and shouted at Yuna, "Wait! Hold on, I'll be back."

I bolted to my lockers, that is, the Blitzball lockers, and dashed through my dirty clothes to spot the object of my pursuit. Then as soon as I had done so, I ran back into the stadium.

"Here it is." I held it out to Yuna.

"What is it?" she asked.

"It's a Blitzball, doof head! It's not an ordinary ball though, this is my lucky ball. I use it when I train by myself or when I really want to kick someone's ass." I laughed.

"Use it, and hope it brings you luck." I continued.

"Thanks" she said, as she turned and jumped into the sphere.

I saw her swim towards Letty, who was defending. She handed the ball over to him, and they started.

"Yunie! Go!" Rikku shouted loudly. I was glad that Yuna was the last one; it meant that no one was around. I don't know, it just felt …safer.

"She's going straight in" Gippal pointed.

_Yuna, just kick the ball as hard as you can. The longer you hold the ball, the more accurate they can tackle you and you lose control of the ball_ I said silently to myself.

She held the ball tightly, she had her eyes closed. _That's not good! Open your eyes, and see the enemy!_

As if she heard what I said, she opened those mismatched eyes, and bolted straight for the goals. _Shoot now!_ I screamed within me. To my horror, I had a sudden memory flash back. It was a conversation I had with her last night. She told me that she didn't know how to shoot…

I saw her struggle, dodging the tackle from Letty, and continue running to the goals. Letty closed in, and grabbed the ball. Yuna fought it. Suddenly, both of their hands slipped, and the ball rolled slowly towards the triangle goals. Slowly…slowly…groping hands stretching to grab the ball. The ball crept onwards, and closed in. Then suddenly, it hit the goal and rebounded harmlessly back.

-

"Sorry I didn't pass." She said when she got out of the water.

"It's alright Yuna, you tried your best." On one side, I felt sorry for her because she tried so hard. On the other, I felt relief because she wouldn't play in a real match.

"Well, that was a pretty good try though ya?" Wakka said, crossing his arms and smiling a little to give her encouragement.

"Thank you. Oh, the ball is still in the sphere." She breathed, exhausted.

"Letty! Pass the ball!" I screamed, as he lowered the ball and kicked it hard through the water sphere and towards me.

It was slightly high, as I jumped up to catch the ball. And of course, everyone knowing my catching abilities, my fingers nicked the ball, and sent the ball flying behind me…but behind me was my friends.

"Watch out!" I called, but upon my turn around, I saw the ball sitting harmless.

It was in Yuna's hands.

"Woh!" Wakka called out.

"Nice catch!" Gippal said, "I bet Tidus couldn't catch that. Wait… Tidus didn't catch that."

"Yuna." A voice called out.

"Yes, Wakka?" she replied.

"That was a very nice catch. Worthy of becoming a replacement for Keepa, don't ya reckon?" Wakka said.

"Yuna! Do you know what this means?" I smiled.

"I'm in?" she said, confused.

"Yunie is in!" Rikku said, jumping up and down.

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**So how is Yuna going to cope with being a member of the Blitzball team? What would Tidus feel? I dunno, dont ask me :)**

**Till next chapter! **


	16. Something that shouldn't happen

**Soooooo sorrry, I have a valid reason for not updating for such a long time:(**

**Well you see, I had major exams, ie my last exams for high school so I had no time to write a story! But that is all over, yay! Well it's been over for a month now...anyways here's the next installment quickly runs away

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**Chapter 16: Something that shouldn't happen**

It Friday, meaning it was the last day of school for the week, but also it was the last period of the day. It happened to be art with Ms Belgemine. I didn't care much, because I just hung my head low, staring at the blank sheet of paper in front of me, and wondering what I would do. After an entire day of bumming around, perhaps half listening to the teacher speak, it was tiring. Even though whatever went through one ear came out through the other, but nonetheless my mind was processing it, even if it didn't remember anything. And so, this was how much mind acted on a Friday afternoon, after a week of enduring the pains of school, I was finally able to enjoy two days off of school. Come to think of it, there are only a few weeks till the summer holidays, and after the holidays are our major assessments. There wouldn't be much time celebrating or relaxing from anything.

"Tidus, are you day dreaming?" Rikku asked, waving her hand in front of my eyes "Yoo-hoo?"

"Rikku, I'm tired, I just want some rest. It's been a long week" I said, folding my arms on the table and resting my head on my arms. I looked down at the blank sheet of paper, staring intently at the miniscule dents on it.

"Tidus, look at what I drew!" she giggled giddily, holding her page in front of me.

It was a doll of some sort, very round with huge eyes and large ears.

"Its soooo cute!" she exclaimed herself, bopping up and down on her seat.

"Yeah, sure whatever, cous" I murmured.

"It is so!" she wiggled her nose, "and what's cous?"

"You're my cousin, so I'm calling you cous. Anything wrong with that?" I was slightly angry, well because I was her cousin. I didn't' want to be, I would have traded anything not to be…

"Oh." She looked turned over to Yuna, (Rikku was sitting between Yuna and me)

"Yunie! Tell Tidus that he has no right to look down upon me!"

"How am I looking down upon you?!" I demanded, pulling on her arm insisting on an answer.

"You said you were my cousin."

"I am"

"Is not! Tell me which of your parents is blood related to mine!" she called out, stamping her feet.

I laughed at her remark, Rikku was see-through. I could see every one of her emotions written all over her.

"Hey! Stop laughing!" she said, pinching me on my cheek, trying to prover her point.

"Ouch! That hurts! That's it… I won't call you my cousin, but I _will_ look down upon you. I'm taller, I can do so!" I argued back, I felt like being childish, since it was the only way to win Rikku in an argument.

"Stop you two." Yuna insisted, "You're the worst two family members I can have." She added.

"Yuna, with all due respects, I do know I am right here. Don't listen to Rikku." I started explaining but was cut off by Rikku whining "Tidus is picking on me! Help me Yunie!" As response, she sighed, but at the corner of her eyes and lips I saw a small smile emerging.

Not long after that, the bell rang signalling the end of school.

"Yay! We can all go to Blitzball training!" Rikku exclaiming, jumping up and down, sometimes I wonder where that girl gets all that energy. I eat a lot, but I don't even get half as much as she does. "I'm gonna go see Gippal first though!" she said, before running off to who knows where, assumingly it was where Gippal was.

"Yuna, do you still remember what happened when we had a party celebrating our art teachers birthday?" I announced, thinking of what happened on that day.

"Yeah, I do." She replied, placing her art folder neatly inside her bag.

I stood there silently because I didn't know what to say. She hardly replied to my question, and she was busy packing her stuff (I thrusted all mine in my bag in less than a second).

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have mentioned it." I said awkwardly, retreating back my question.

"It's okay," she paused, putting a few things into her bag then without looking directly at me, "I started to like you then".

That remark stunned me completely; I quickly glanced around to see if anyone was watching, it was as if she shot a critical freezing arrow at me. It would not be exaggeration to say that I was blown away.

"Do you know what you are talking about Yuna?" I snapped, only after seeing that there was no one around. She didn't continue on the conversation though, as she walked straight out the door and towards the Blitzball stadium.

-

I wasn't into Blitzball training that afternoon; I was too distracted by what Yuna had said to me not ten minutes prior to that. What should I do? What is the correct option to take? I didn't know the answer, because everything was so muddled up. After practice, Gippal came to pick Rikku up.

"Guys, want a lift? It's pretty dark" he asked, opening the door for Rikku to get in.

"Thanks Gippal, I want to have walk in the breeze tonight" I replied, exchanging glances with Yuna, whom didn't seem to mind. We watched Gippal and Rikku drive off in a yellow convertible, before walking slowly towards home.

There was an awkward silence conjuring up between us, partly because I didn't know what to say.

"So…the weather's nice today…" I commented stupidly, trying to make conversation.

"Yeah, I guess there's a nice breeze." Yuna replied.

"Listen Yuna, the thing you said after art class..." I started.

Yuna cut me off, "Pretend you didn't hear it."

"How can I pretend I didn't hear it, Yuna? I heard it loud and clear. I thought about it, and I realised something."

"What?" she looked up, curiously.

"I like you Yuna. I can't stop thinking about you. Perhaps beyond the level a brother should treat his sister. Perhaps even to the extent that my brain is going to explode if I don't see you." I reached forward, and cupped her cheeks feeling her warmth flow through my hands. She put on a weak smile, blink a few times giving of the radiance from her unique eyes.

"I know we can't be together Yuna. We can't. We aren't supposed to like each other. I can't control it anymore. I liked you way before anything of this happened. If anyone was to take the blame, I blame on Yevon. We shouldn't have met, we shouldn't have. And until today I didn't know, we both shouldn't have fallen for each other." I held her close, wrapping my arms around her into an intimate hug.

"You know ….I like you too, but…" she paused.

"So what shall we ever do now Tidus?" she whispered, placing her head on my shoulders whilst I stroked her back. I breathed in her warm scent from her gorgeous light brown hair.

"I don't know Yuna. There's one thing I know, and that is the fact that I can't deny my feelings for you." I released her, but still held onto her hands, intertwining my fingers with hers.

She continued to lean her head on my shoulders whilst we walked slowly back home.

"You know Yuna, even though it's been a few years that we secretly admired each other, it might all be temporary…perhaps one day we'll just forget about all this…"

"No, I won't forget about it" she insisted, giving me an intent glare.

"Do you believe you only like me a little, Tidus?" she continued.

"I don't know, I've never loved anyone this much before. But you know me Yuna, back at junior high all I did was muck around. Maybe I love my brother more, maybe less I don't know."

"Does that mean you're gay?" she asked, at the corner of her lips curled upwards.

"No, of course not, he's my brother." I explained, rubbing her hand with my thumb.

"I'm your sister though" she laughed.

"Yeah but your different" I said, giving her a light peck on her cheeks.

"Okay I get it, you get to tease me all you want and …" she stopped halfway because she saw me staring at her in wonder.

"Is there something on my face?" she inquired, as she pulled out a hand and rubbed her cheeks.

"Yeah there is. I'll just get it for you" I said as I pulled slowly towards her breathing heavily on her skin purposely.

"Where is it? Where is the dirt?" she said, giving me a sense that she cared a lot about how she looked in front of me. Well that isn't bad, I thought to myself.

"Yuna, there's too much beauty on your face. I wish that I could breathe in the beauty and take in everything that I love about you."

"What do you like about me then?" giving me innocent cute eyes pretending she didn't know what I was talking about.

"Oh you clearly know what I'm talking about darling" I whispered into her ears before saying

"Everything about you, I love every single bit of you."

She looked at me, smiled then she slipped her hand into mine, as our feet pounded together on the pavement, our eyes brimming with happiness.

"So Yuna, what do you like about me?" I asked some time later, after absorbing the tranquillity of the night.

"I don't know. Maybe it's just a sudden lust on you. Perhaps it's not even love at all." She frowned, her hand tightening its grasp on mine.

"Hey! I told you how I feel about you, now you should tell me how you feel about me in return!" I insisted, adding a tinny bit of whinging to enhance my point.

"I like your eyes" she smiled a little, "they are sky blue. I guess it looks kind of cute."

"I love your eyes too Yuna" I said it almost instinctively.

"Tidus?" she said sweetly.

"Yes, Yuna?" I replied. Is she trying to hit on me so soon? Was she really going to take this all the way already? To be honest it was really hard to resist that smile, really really hard. And in addition to that, she probably knew that smile was irresistible, but I wasn't going to let her get my weakness.

"Could you let go of me now? We are outside the house already" I quickly slipped my hand back, leaving the essence of the stupidity of misinterpreting her smile as flirting.

"Sorry" I quickly said, as she pulled out a key and inserted into the keyhole, where a click was heard moments later.

Inside Braska sat comfortably on the couch (which I have come to discover was his usual spot) and held a newspaper.

"Hello little ones" he called, lifting his eyes momentarily off the paper, glancing towards us.

"Hi daddy" Yuna called back, taking off her shoes.

"Hey, how's your day?" I said, kicking off my shoes and wondering why she bothers with untying them.

"Oh I had a chat with the Praetor, and everything is going quite successfully." He chuckled to himself as if giving himself a pat on the back.

"What's this about?" Yuna asked, walking into the lounge.

"Yuna, I forgot to tell you, I'm arranging a marriage with the Praetor's son. It's the only way to keep my family same from the Guado."

From that instant, I could almost see Yuna fume, because she bolted up the stairs, thumping her way into the corridors.

I looked at Braska, at his rapidly fading pride of his 'great' idea and ran after her.

"Yuna, wait!" I put a hand on her shoulder.

"Did you know about this?" she cried out, turning around and put us into a tight embrace.

"Yes I did, sorry Yuna, it's the only way."

"Why does it have to be like this? Why? I rather go back into the danger, the peril of getting bullied by Seymour than to be ripped apart like that" I could feel her tears drenching my t-shirt. Her breath warmed my chest, and the steaming hot tears of hers rolled endlessly, nonetheless I was futile to do anything to help.

"Tidus, I want to be with you. I really want to be with you."

"Yuna, we will be together till the end, I promise" I held her closer, feeling her heaving back starting to calm down slightly.

"Not until the end, always Tidus, stay with me always. Forever and ever."

"Forever and ever, Yuna" I assured her.

Suddenly there were footsteps creaking up, as we broke apart quickly just to see Braska's face emerge from the horizon of the steps.

"Daddy?" Yuna began in a weak and feeble voice.

"Yes honey, look I'm sorry of informing you so abruptly but it's for your good…" Braska started.

"I accept that marriage agreement" she broke him off; as I closed my eyes shut, and gritted my teeth. I didn't want to hear the rest of that sentence.

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**This chapter is only 2.2k words, but I would rather update earlier than to wait a while till I finish the it properly. As compensation...I'll add something at the end...**

**Hobo's Dialogue**

Lkea : Say Tidus, you are stupid you know?

Tidus : Wah? Did I ever offend you?

Lkea : No, but you see ever since the begining you were too shy to talk to her. Even when you started talking to her you were being very stoogey, constant stammering and ..you know..being a stupid little boy who had no social interactions what so ever

Tidus : Yes but...you were the one that made me like that...can't you make my character more...elegant and cool? You don't see me so 'stoogey' in FFX do you?

Lkea : ...

Tidus : Anyways, I did get a lot of girls back in junior high, which is waaaaaay more than you did. Say, how many did you get?

Lkea : ...none :'(

Tidus : See, if anyone was the stooge, you are the stooge

Lkea : But! But!!! But the 'stooge' made you so popular and 'get those girls'

Tidus : Why are you controlling me anyway

Lkea : Because I'm the author of this story. And I said so!

Tidus : If you have so much power, why dont you make Yuna, NOT Braska's daughter? That way everyone is happy, I get to be with Yuna, and you get to see that we are together again- you are pretty sad...

Lkea :Screw you! Since you disrespected me, I won't change a thing about your situation with Yuna!

Tidus : Noooooooo, dont abuse your powers. You know I can sue you...for...disgracing...err..FFX...and my name...since you dont own me...Squaresoft does

Lkea : ...

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**Okay, I'll try to be more studious and finish the next chapter soon. I've been pretty lazy lately...**


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